Mischief, Midgard & Madness
by Madame Marvelous
Summary: *COMPLETE* The Avengers' Leslie Leonards is merging her company with Stark Industries in the aftermath of Loki's assault. When the God of Mischief is ordered to repent on Earth as punishment, Leslie finds herself snared betwixt Loki and Tony Stark in a whirlwind of friendship, lies, love and loss. Can the madness be quelled before innocent lives are lost?
1. Down In Mexico

_**Quick Note**_

**If you don't like OC stories, this is NOT the fic for you! **

**Despite what the following chapter sounds like, this will NOT be the tone of the rest of the story! Trust me, it's worth at least reading on one more chapter. It isn't as simple as you think~**

**Anything confusing now will be explained later. The first chapter is followed by rewinding in time to make sense of what you are about to read. For now, enjoy! And PLEASE don't hesitate to review and criticize. This is my first fic in years!**

Leslie emerged from the hotel suite in a thin robe that hardly clung to her curvy frame. Off on the balcony Loki sat on a lounge chair overlooking the Mexican beach. He wore only a pair of cargo shorts, letting his exposed, pale skin soak in the vitamin D. Leslie came up behind him and slid her arms around his bare chest, admiring the god's sculpted figure. Loki sighed contently and smiled lazily.

"Do you not wish this could be forever eternal?" His silky Asgardian accent was intoxicating to Leslie. She gave a silent, vehement nod. "We could start a life away from everything."

"In an alternate universe, yes," agreed Leslie sarcastically. She walked around the god and placed herself on top of him ever so seductively. "I have a lot of matters to attend to back in reality. You know we can't make this permanent, as nice as it is."

"You can, you know. You just choose not to."

Loki had a hard time registering concern for others. Apart from Leslie, he rarely if ever took anyone else into account with his decisions. She was a good hearted American vixen with a taste for the humanitarian lifestyle. He was a ruthless plotting god from Asgard with a bad track record of killing, subjugating and destroying anyone and anything in his path. Despite their being different in almost every ounce of their being, Loki and Leslie were desperately attracted to each other in the strangest of ways. Their relationship was a mixed muddle of heart-to-heart conversations and physical escapades. They were one another's confidants just as much as they were their guilty pleasures. This was a fact neither would admit out loud before anyone but each other. Their passion was for their eyes only. And this game would not last forever. Leslie had been mulling over ideas on how to end it for a week straight.

"Just because you can do something doesn't mean you should." The brunette sighed heavily and frowned. "I don't expect you to understand that, though."

"No, I do," he replied with an offended tone. "I am not dense. I know how you are. Too virtuous for my taste, personally – but I try not to think of such things when bedding you."

Leslie covered her face with her hands and let out a soft groan. "This needs to stop, Loki."

"Does it, now?" Loki quirked an eyebrow and smirked as he pulled Leslie's hands down and away from her face. "Look me in the eyes and say that again."

Leslie stared the god down intently but her lips merely parted in silence. She could not bring herself to say it to his face. Whatever strange force was keeping her attached to him was not ready to flush itself out of her system. _This is just a stupid phase_, she thought. _My petty infatuation will die down eventually. I'm so sure. It has to!_

After a long moment of silence, Loki chuckled menacingly in victory. "Yes, just as I thought." He pulled the earthling close to him and began to kiss her repeatedly before she pulled herself away.

"I don't get it," she let out with frustration. "You hate 'us pathetic mortals,' yet you are obnoxiously clingy with me!" She shook her head in confusion. "Why the hell am I so different? Why don't I repulse you?"

"I do not know," replied the Asgardian god. In actuality he was lying but he hoped she would not catch on. "Perhaps the mere forbidden nature of what we have entices me so."

"Bullshit!" Leslie climbed off of Loki and meandered to the edge of the balcony, leaning on the railing with her gaze to the gulf's waters. She had thought that coming to Mexico would be a comfortable way of hiding the deranged love affair but the hot air was beginning to get annoying. As much as she wished to be emotionally detached from it all, she was becoming fond of what they had. A few tears twisted their way down her cheeks in silence.

"Leslie…" Loki's voice was laced with genuine concern. "Are you… crying?" He got up from the lounge chair and joined the American at the balcony's edge. He put one arm lovingly around her and pulled her in to his chest. He knew deep down why he cared for the creature. Still, he would be reluctant to admit it out loud. "There, there. Stop your tears."

The mortal pressed herself against him as she sobbed, her fingernails slightly digging into Loki's back. "Oh God!" she let out exasperatedly as she looked up at him, eyes red and puffy, while his were crystalline and cool. Realization began to pour into her mind for the first time amongst it all. Loki's pain, his outcast nature, his story, his struggle, his deprivation of affection, always living in someone else's shadow, a stolen relic, a false life… she had become so sorry for him that she had _sympathy _for the outcast. And more than that, the sympathy was twisting into something more. _I love him. This can't be real. I actually love him!_

Seeing the young lady in such pain actually bothered Loki immensely. He wished for nothing more than to ease the confliction that tortured her so.

"Come with me, to Asgard?"

Loki's words took Leslie by surprise. A soft "what?" was all she managed to choke out.

"I need to return tonight for a hearing from the probation council," he admitted half embarrassed. "Perhaps getting away from this world for a little while could help clear your head."

"Can I come back soon?" She did not want to leave behind her duties for too long. Her company was on the verge of being bought by Stark Industries, and Tony had assumed a lot of leadership. To be gone for a moment would be of no corporate consequence, but anything too noticeable was too distressing to even think about.

"As soon as you wish, I promise." Loki placed a gentle kiss on Leslie's lips to seal the deal.

He walked away into their hotel suite for just a moment and returned in his familiar Asgardian attire. Tossing one of Leslie's sundresses her way, she slipped herself out of the robe and into the red and white floral ensemble instead.

"I thought you lost your magic," she remarked as she adjusted the dress's thin straps. "How do we get to Asgard from Mexico exactly?"

"Odin is going to summon me once Heimdall tells him I wish to come back."

"Oh," she nodded as if she understood but was completely confused. "Of _course_, of _course_!"

Loki shook his head at her stupid act and smiled. "Hold on tight," he whispered to her as he put her arms around him.

The pair began to glow in an eerie electric blue light. Then, in an instant, they propelled at dazzling speeds through a wormhole strung about the cosmos. Leslie was speechless once they materialized in Asgard. Had they really traversed worlds so quickly? She breathed deeply, slowly, taking in the golden bathed beauty of the new realm before her.

"Gorgeous, is it not?" Loki took her by the hand and began to walk her into the palace. "I promise you will have time to gaze at it later. I do not want to be late for the hearing and I refuse to leave you wandering about on your own."

"Yes, of course." Leslie nodded slowly and walked beside the god, dumbfounded that this was somehow still reality. "Am I getting a babysitter?"

Loki smirked to himself. "Something like that."

After the two rounded a corner they entered into a spacious and royal looking room, complete with company. Sitting on luxurious couches of different shapes and sizes were the Warriors Three, while Lady Sif was pacing closer to the entryway. She stopped instantly once Loki and Leslie entered the room. She had been waiting for the God of Mischief to return so she could formally escort him to his hearing, but his guest was unexpected.

"Who is this?" she asked with a curious edge to her voice. She had no way of knowing if Leslie was hostile or a possible threat to Asgard.

"This is Leslie of Midgard," announced Loki formally. He had the attention of all four warriors in the room. "She has worked alongside Thor before and was partly responsible for stopping my conquests in her world." It was an awkward truth to admit out loud, and both he and Leslie cringed a bit at the reference to it. "I was hoping to leave her with the lot of you until my hearing ceases."

"You are a warrior of Midgard?" asked Fandral in a state of intrigue. "Surely this is not your armor in battle." The sight of an average young woman in a seasonal dress was a very unconvincing image for him to absorb.

"Oh, no, this is just a silly little dress." Leslie smiled, stepping forward into the room. "I would never go into battle looking like this."

Reaching her hands up above her head, the brunette closed her eyes and let a sudden white light enshroud her. Before everyone's eyes, the sundress was promptly replaced by a skin tight black mini dress with a series of metallic silver embellishments; a belt, buckles, straps and the like. She wore a tall boots and wrist cuffs equipped with high-tech Stark brand weaponry. A simplistic black mask outlined her eyes which had been green before but were now a pale blue. Her brown hair had become faded blonde, and her slightly tan skin was as pale as snow. Once the transformation was complete, the white shroud dissipated and Leslie stood posed and ready for battle.

"_This_ is how I fight." With a clever smirk, she released a whip of pure electrical energy from each hand and snapped them in midair. And with a simple flick of the wrists, they receded into her once more. "My friends call me Axia."

All four were amused by her transformation and truly impressed to boot. Leslie snapped her fingers and swiftly reverted back into the sundress, her skin, hair, and eye color all restoring to normal. The warriors three clapped in appreciation for the mini performance while Sif smiled and nodded in delighted approval.

The goddess of war gave an honorable handshake to Leslie. "You and I must discuss combat techniques later. I admire a fellow woman in arms!"

"Sure, sounds fun!" beamed Leslie with falsified enthusiasm. Combat was hardly one of her favorite subjects but was determined to remain on the warriors' good side. The last thing she needed was to make enemies in Asgard.

"I shall return soon, Leslie." Loki exited the room with Sif for his hearing, leaving Leslie with the warriors three for some unconventional babysitting.

"So, how are we killing time around here?" she asked them all with a mischievous grin.

"We'll answer that as soon as you tell us how you got Loki wrapped around your mortal little finger," mused Fandral in return.


	2. The Crystal Room

**One month earlier…**

Genius billionaire playboy philanthropist Tony Stark admired the progress his beloved Tower had seen. Just a few months ago it had been decimated along with several blocks of Midtown in New York City during the Chitauri invasion. There were still some scars showing but for the most part Stark Tower was looking good-as-new. Congress's Project RESCUE had done an equally good job in cleaning up the rest of the destruction in the Big Apple. Stark had a large hand in its funding, in part because he hoped the resulting PR could help ease some tensions. Most of the nation rallied in support of The Avengers. They were regarded as heroes, the ultimate defenders of Earth. Still, some politicians sought to quell the hype by bringing up questions such as – should The Avengers be responsible for a lot of the collateral damage from the invasion? Should unofficial "warriors" be allowed to run around unchecked despite their obvious alliances?

Truth be told, all of it gave the CEO a migraine.

A familiar female voice came from behind him. "You have an interesting way of tossing around hush money." The accompanying giggle told him it was Leslie Leonards.

Without turning around to face her he kept his gaze on Stark Tower. "It isn't _hush money_, it's well-deserved aide. Can't I ever do something nice for others sans the remarks?"

"Was that a serious question?" Leslie walked to stand next to him, equally amazed at how the Tower was coming along. "You have your moments Tony but you aren't exactly the world's biggest tree hugger."

Stark rolled his eyes. "Okay, next time _you_ can catch the incoming nuke and drag it into an interstellar portal under the pretense of imminent death while _I _make the snide comments."

It was a sobering memory for the both of them. For an endless minute, all of The Avengers had thought Stark dead, watching his motionless body tumble towards the Earth.

Leslie broke the tension by producing a large bag of steaming hot food. She passed it off to Stark with a cheeky grin.

"Shawarma?" he asked with childish excitement. The delicious contents within confirmed his hopes. But his delight quickly turned to suspicion as he eyed down the fellow CEO.

Leslie stared warily at him. "What?"

"You only get me shawarma when you _want _something. What are you up to?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

Stark sighed with aggravation and began to grill the woman. "The first time you got it for me was a week after we all went together. You tried to schmooze me into merging our companies. The time after that, some three weeks hence, you weaseled Stark tech out of me to upgrade your Axia armor. Pray tell, what do you want this time?"

Leslie laughed nervously and shrugged. "Oh, nothing much. Just curious how busy you are tonight. I think it'd be nice if we dined at The Crystal Room this evening."

"Just you and me?" Stark gave her playful smirk. He was loyal to Pepper, of course, but he could never completely dismiss his inner playboy.

Leslie winked back at him. "Just you and me. What do you say?"

"Well, I'll have to check my schedule." He pulled out his phone and began to scroll through his planner too fast to actually read it.

The brunette leaned forward and poked the bag of food. "It's the falafel special."

"Oh, what do you know, I'm free after all!" Stark pulled out the food and began eating on the spot. With half a mouth full he got out a muffled, "Pick you up at eight."

…

…

…

Leslie and Stark had a good laugh over a bottle of fine champagne as they dined in The Crystal Room. The privacy of their VIP booth allowed for some heavy corporate chitchat free of any eavesdropping presence. In the span of a couple hours, Leslie and Stark had managed to solidify the means of a merger between the clean energy titan Stark Industries and the technological powerhouse of Lyrhon Incorporated.

"Of course our BOD's will want to hammer out details but I don't foresee any problems." Stark partook in a rather formal handshake with Leslie to confirm it.

"Alright then, cheers to a better future!" Leslie raised her champagne glass and toasted with her soon-to-be-coworker. "I couldn't imagine a better partner."

"Neither could I." Stark reached across the table and kissed Leslie's hand in a half joking manner. "Beautiful _and _intelligent, not every day you get both in the same package."

Leslie smirked and gave him bedroom eyes. "You could say the same for you."

She playfully danced one hand across the table until she came to Stark's tie. Tugging on it, she brought him close to her, both of them leaning half way across the table. Both of them stared each other down before they ended up in a spur of the moment kiss. It was mutual at first but Stark backed off after a moment.

"That did not just happen," he said matter-of-factly. "Nor will it happen ever again."

Leslie frowned, disappointed. "But why? Don't you like me?"

"Oh, I like you." Stark gave her a cold glare with his next sentence. "But I _love _Pepper."

The female slumped in her seat a bit, green eyes fixated on her lap. "Yes. Yes, of course."

"Our relationship is professional. End of story." Stark stood up from his seat and put on his blazer. "Don't make me throw away our friendship." Without another word, the CEO left the restaurant and Leslie behind.

The brunette buried her face in her hands and began to sob quietly. The night had started exactly how she imagined yet had still managed to end up in shambles. She assumed there might be a degree of challenge in peeling away Stark from Pepper but he was too loyal to her for an affair. Tonight was proof of that. _God, I'm such an idiot. How did I think I could stand a chance? I don't even know._

"Moron…" she sneered out loud at herself. "Absolute moron!"

"Well now, I suppose you have some distaste for me, but 'moron' is hardly a fitting insult."

Not expecting anyone to be around, Leslie pulled her face out of her hands, embarrassed at who could possibly have seen her like this. The mystery guest horrified her.

"YOU!" Leslie jerked backwards, knocking her champagne glass onto the ground. The shattering noise echoed disturbingly in the restaurant. Within a moment a Crystal Room employee had arrived to clean the mess.

Across the table from her where Stark had been sitting only moments ago now sat Loki, God of Mischief, with the most conniving look in his eyes.

He snickered coolly.

"Surprise."


	3. Community Service

"What the _hell _are you doing here?" Leslie rose form her seat in anger. "How did Thor let you go?" She whipped out her cell phone, poised to call Nick Furry. "SHIELD will be all over your ass in a hot second. Start talking or I'll 'entertain' you until they get here."

"Calm yourself mortal, I do not seek any quarrels with you." Loki folded his arms on the table and remained as cool as ice. "My bumbling so-called 'brother' did not let me escape. I am here with _permission_." The last word rolled off his tongue with deep disdain.

"You can't be serious." Leslie had her thumb hovering over the call button, Furry's contact page still up on her screen. "How in god's name did you manage that?"

"It is part of my unfortunate probation thanks to your little band of freaks foiling my handiwork earlier this year. I am supposed to perform an amount of 'community service,' as they say."

"I think you've already serviced _my _community sufficiently enough for one lifetime."

"Yes, I am quite aware of that." Loki rose from his seat to match Leslie. "Let us make this easy shall we? Allow me to do some petty favor for you, have Heimdall witness it, and I will be on my merry way."

Before Leslie could say a word, another restaurant employee appeared with a replacement glass and filled it with champagne as he apologized. She could not register why he was even apologizing when she was the one that broke the glass. Shaking her head, she chugged the alcohol as soon as the employee was out of sight.

"Okay then." Leslie filled the glass up once more from the bottle at the table and finished it even quicker than the first. "I'm in the mood to do some seriously stupid shit tonight so why the hell not." She put away her cell phone and offered Stark's glass to Loki. "Cheers."

Loki gave a half-hearted chuckle at Leslie's expense and sipped the drink elegantly. "Cheers."


	4. Something Happened To You, Didn't It?

Leslie stepped into her Manhattan penthouse and flicked on the lights to the main room. Loki was close behind her, trailing only slightly as he observed the Midgardian architecture of her dwelling place. He deemed it a bit peculiar compared to the environment he had grown up in back in Asgard. He found Leslie's penthouse to be rather clean and fresh. A fact that would soon be contradicted by the CEO herself.

"So, you want to do some kind of favor for me huh?" Leslie hardly ever drank. The hefty amount of champagne she consumed at The Crystal Room was having a small effect on her personality. "I've got the perfect bullshit task for you. Follow me."

Loki rolled his eyes and followed Leslie down a couple of hallways over to a simple black door. She tossed it open with force. The motion censored lights revealed an absolute mess. Papers and boxes were scattered everywhere so much so that the floor and furniture were obscured entirely. A few random tarps were strewn about the room as well. It was an absolute pigsty.

"What the…?" Loki glared at Leslie intensely. "You cannot be serious."

"Oh, I am." Leslie snorted as she laughed and waved her hand about the doorway. "This room isn't going to clean itself now! Hop to it!"

Loki groaned and walked into the room with heavy steps. He knelt down and began to examine the papers. "Do you need any of this?"

"Only the papers with purple check marks on them. Red checks and blanks are trash." She grabbed a couple of large empty boxes close to the doorway and tossed them at Loki. "Sort 'em out, champ." Tossing her arms in the air, she stretched a bit and sighed. "I'm gonna go get out of this ridiculous dress. Try and enslave the planet while I'm gone and you'll have two realms ready to kick your ass."

"I would not dream of it," sneered Loki sarcastically as he sorted through papers like a lowly cubical worker.

Leslie strolled through the halls and over to her bedroom with a loose glide to her swagger. She kicked off her heels after opening the door and tossed her closet open, scanning her nightwear selection as she peeled out of her dress. It was a moment before she decided on a pair of white cotton shorts and a lavender colored silk tank top. She popped her feet into a pair of stereotypical bunny slippers and walked crookedly back towards the office Loki was slaving away in.

Once Leslie had left his sight, Loki immediately stood up and began pacing about the room. He was exasperated at the situation he allowed himself to get into. Compared to what lay below the surface, cleaning a stupid messy office was nothing. He would clean a thousand of them for any mortal rather than be in Leslie's presence. When the probation committee at Asgard had ordered him to perform acts of repentance on Midgard as part of his punishment he never imagined it would be this. The one girl on the entire wretched planet that reminded him of _her_. Perhaps he volunteered to help her of all people because, despite the pain her image brought on, it also brought with it some hope.

"There cannot possibly be any connection… can there?" he whispered to himself.

Leslie Leonards was a dead ringer for Ejlonwe of Asgard. Ejlonwe, the beautiful brunette with the charming laugh that echoed through the palace like music, was the object of Loki's affection once upon a time. Before jealousy consumed him, before he knew of his true personage, before any genuine evil beyond youthful mischief hijacked his mind, Ejlonwe was the epitome of all things wonderful in his world. Thor would always tease Loki about the matter, especially Loki's lack of confidence when talking to her. When he watched her get brutally killed by a Frost Giant before his very eyes… oh, how sure he had been that it was the end of her. Of any hope he had at love from another being.

Yet there Leslie was, torturing him so, just by being alive. Loki could not sleep without knowing whether she was a reincarnation, a duplication, any sort of relation at all to the goddess he would have died for.

Loki was thrust out of his thoughts by the presence of Leslie leaning against the doorframe. "You've made _no _progress, you know. At least pretend to care?"

"Oh." The Asgardian shook his head and tried to bring himself back to reality. "Yes, well, such petty tasks are beneath me. I cannot pretend to be passionately motivated by this."

Leslie rolled her eyes and knelt on the floor to start sorting papers herself. "Here, let me help you. It'll go faster that way."

Loki's mind instantly flashed on a memory from some years back. He had been carrying a large stack of loose leaf notes from sorcery training to his room when he tripped in the hall on his way, scattering the contents everywhere. Ejlonwe had rounded the corner at that exact moment to catch the comical scene. Bursting out with golden laughter, the young girl ran over to Loki and knelt on the floor beside him.

"_You poor thing! This will take ages to sort! Here, let me help you. It will go faster that way," she had said to him with a radiant smile._

Leslie looked far less amused and giddy but those were still Ejlonwe's words, at least to Loki. He could have sworn he felt the top layer of the icy shell that bound his soul begin to melt a little.

"Thank you," he replied indifferently and mindlessly began sorting. It was a moment before he realized Leslie was staring at him as if he had three heads. "… _what_?"

"You _thanked_ me! Are you sure you're the same Loki I beat the crap out of before?"

Her sharp words brought him back to himself. "Bah," he spat, "the same as I shall ever be. Do not expect to hear such blather from me again."

Leslie surprised even herself by giggling a bit. "Should have known," she mumbled while shaking her head in slight amusement.

_Well, her demeanor changed suddenly. _Loki tried not to wrack his brain too intensively about her slight transformation. Just an hour ago at the restaurant Leslie would have had an army ready from SHIELD set to rip him limb from limb. Her personal hatred for him was of no mysterious origin; his attempt to conquer Earth and her fight alongside The Avengers to stop him would hardly produce the desire for friendship. Yet now she could laugh at his cold scoffing and miserable nature? What had happened?

"Call me silly, but…" Leslie turned to stare at Loki with her soft green eyes. Not to glare, just to observe harmlessly. Curiously, in fact. "I think you could change you know."

"Change what?" Loki hardly cared about whatever she was going on about. He tossed a series of papers in a box and moved on to a new set.

"Well, how you are." The brunette smiled at him even though he was not even looking at her. "You were promptly labeled as evil but… perhaps that was not quite the best word for you in our records. Maybe misunderstood would be more fitting."

Loki rolled his eyes. "Pray tell how you came to that conclusion?"

"For a moment before you turned so soft, it was fascinating. Your face lost all tension, you just mellowed out, and then thanked me. That's some shred of a decent person I think was you once upon a time. Am I really all that wrong?"

Finally, Loki conjured up an iota of care. He stopped shifting papers about.

"What consequence is it to you who I was or am now?"

"So-called 'villains' usually aren't born that way, Loki. They're made. Often through abuse or tragedy." Any remnants of the champagne had left her system, leaving a very serious and concerned Leslie for Loki to observe for the first time. "Something terrible happened to you… didn't it?"

Not a single person had ever bothered to ask him that before. He was unsure of how to respond at first.

"Perhaps," was all he could muster. She was reluctant to get that much from him.

She reached out and took his hand, and with the utmost compassion in her voice, asked, "Would you like to talk about it?" No mocking sarcasm, no hidden agenda, just pure concern.

Loki froze at her touch, and further so at her words. He was suspended in a strange emotion he could not place, but only for a moment. He suddenly rose to his feet and left the office without a word. Leslie remained on the floor amongst the papers, listening to the sound of his footsteps echo down the hall. They slowed gradually until they stopped completely.

_Three… two… one…_

"Leslie?" His voice came from down the hall.

_Called it. Everyone needs a therapist sometimes._

"Yes?"

She listened as the footsteps resumed in the opposite direction. He was back at the office in a brief moment.

Loki inhaled and paused, as if hesitating on what the right words were to say. Furrowing his brow, he gave up and just snapped, "Never ask me about my past again."

"Fine." Leslie rose to her feet and walked over to Loki, still smiling. "But I'm here when you're ready to talk, okay?" A small moment of awkward silence passed between them before she broke it. "Well, it's awfully late. I say we forget about the office for now and I'll give you some task a little more… purposeful… in the morning. Let me take you to your room."

"My room? You want me to stay here?" Loki gave a brief menacing laugh. "And if I decide to kill you in your sleep?"

Leslie shrugged. "Then you won't get to try my cinnamon sugar pancakes tomorrow morning at breakfast. Anyone who's had them can tell you that'd be your loss, big time."

Loki stared at Leslie in disbelief. She had not even flinched at his threat. His lips were parted in a subtle gaping face, producing another familiar giggle from Leslie.

_This woman cannot be real_, he thought. _There is no conceivable way._


	5. Love And Loss

The God of Mischief stared down the stack of pancakes with disdain. Leslie wasn't kidding last night. He would be lying if he said the aroma wasn't delicious. Still, caving in to mortal delights was something he was not willing to do.

"You _do _eat on your planet, don't you?" Leslie was still in her pajamas, flipping the last few pancakes on the griddle. _God, what a weirdo._

"Hm, well yes," answered Loki as he poked the pancakes curiously with a fork. "Most often in disgusting amounts, actually. War and feasts are two of the hallmarks of Asgardian culture." He grinned slyly. "I'm partial to the former."

"Kinda figured that much out on my own." Leslie took the last couple pancakes to her own plate and joined Loki at the kitchen table. "Just try them, please? I had the decency to even give you a knife."

Loki spun the butter knife around in his hands, still sly in his demeanor. "How charming of you to entrust me with this." The urge to be true to his mischievous nature overwhelmed him. Rising from his seat rapidly, he raised his hand with the knife and swung it with force.

Leslie gasped and jumped up into action at once. She lunged across the table at him and pinned him to the floor in a split second. Loki merely stared up at her in amusement. The knife was firmly planted in the heart of his pancake stack. He was threatening no one, just cutting his food over-dramatically. The Asgardian began to laugh chillingly.

"Not even remotely funny," Leslie muttered before climbing off from on top of him.

Loki got up, still laughing, and took his seat once more. He pushed the knife down through the stack and cut a piece out to try. When Leslie sat back down in her seat she was greeted by an amusing scene. The villain was chewing the food in shock. She couldn't help but laugh.

"I told you they were good!"

Loki swallowed and tried to appear angry. "Nonsense! Do not flatter yourself. It is the most putrid meal I have ever consumed."

"Oh, sure. So that's why you're still eating it?"

Loki caught himself raising another piece to his mouth but paused for a moment. "I need to keep up my strength if I am to deal with you and your idiocy in my punishment." _You shall not get the satisfaction of me complimenting your cooking, mortal. Even if it is delightful._

He put the piece in his mouth and glared off to the side while he chewed.

"That's not all you'll need strength for today. You'll have to deal with me _and _the task I'm putting you up to. Consider my cinnamon sugar pancakes as a preemptive thank you for your labor."

"Labor?" Loki growled. "I hope you do not mean to give me more petty chores."

Leslie sipped some coffee from her mug, her brain a bit unprepared for Loki this early in the morning. "No worries, we're beyond that. I was actually thinking you could give me a hand down at the labs. My company's research facility is only a few blocks from here."

"Research labs, hm? I suppose it would be more interesting than being your janitorial staff."

"Great. Just do me a favor and don't walk around Manhattan with me dressed like, um… whatever you're dressed as." Leslie cringed. "I don't need any unwanted attention. If SHIELD finds out I didn't alert them about you… let's just say they don't have a high tolerance policy for concealment."

Loki glanced down at his Asgardian wardrobe for a moment, half expecting his magic to transform his appearance. Much to his dismay, he had a small confession to make.

"My powers were stripped of me. Have you anything to borrow?" The words came out in a strained pain. He loathed being powerless.

"Wait, you don't have your magic?" Leslie began to chuckle. "You're a mortal?"

Loki groaned inwardly. As much as the god hated to admit it, his temporary status was much akin to mortal.

"Something along those lines, yes, but not entirely." He began to flush red as Leslie burst into laughter at his expense. "Why is this so amusing to you, you wretch?"

"You're an Average Joe now! It's kind of hysterical. Oh gosh, if you being here wasn't such a secret I would be texting Natasha _right now_." Leslie calmed her laughter and motioned for Loki to follow her. "Come, I'll find you something."

The two walked in silence towards Leslie's bedroom, her with an amused smile and him with a morbid scowl. As soon as they entered the room Leslie walked over to a small closet that had not been open in ages. She rustled about for a moment and procured some men's clothing that looked like it should fit him. She tossed him a forest green button-up dress shirt, black slacks and a pair of dress shoes.

"May I ask why you have men's clothing in the first place?" asked Loki as he grabbed the garments in midair. He headed into Leslie's private bathroom and shut the door to begin changing.

"They're, um…" Leslie frowned as she began stripping down. "They were my boyfriend's. I still have some of his clothes here."

Her words sounded hollow and pained. This delighted the Asgardian. "Ah, did the pathetic bastard leave you without a single explanation?" He smirked as he began to slide the black slacks on.

Leslie sighed sorrowfully and pulled a formal gold top out of her closet. "He died, actually." Closing her eyes, she tried to keep her emotions at bay. "… right in front of me."

Loki suddenly felt like an ass for having said what he did. Not only did the annoying earthling remind him of Ejlonwe, she too had watched the one she loved die before her very eyes. Normally he could care less about other people's pains and sorrows, but that damned connection to Ejlonwe kept giving him an ounce of remorse.

"That is rather tragic," he muttered but still loud enough for her to hear outside the bathroom. He pulled his arms through the sleeves and began buttoning the shirt. "Sorry to have prodded you."

"It's creepy when you apologize," she quipped back. "Almost as much as when you thank me." She slid into a black pencil skirt and popped on a pair of heels. _He had another moment of vulnerability? First when I offered to help him, then when I referenced Darren. I need to be as subtle as possible and pry at him. He must have a soft side somewhere._

"I shall try my best not to make a habit of either." Loki smoothed his long hair out and knocked on the inside of the bathroom door. "Are you decent?"

"Yeah, come on out."

Leslie was momentarily taken back by now nice he looked in one of Darren's old getups. He looked nothing like her late lover who was a blonde-haired, blue-eyed optimist with a smile that could make anyone fall in love. Loki was a pale, raven-haired, green-eyed psychopath who was quelling his insane urges long enough to repent on Earth.

"Let's walk there. I think I want the exercise. It isn't far." The brunette and the god left her penthouse swiftly and began trekking down the crowded sidewalks of New York City.

Loki waited a moment before curiosity got the better of him. He had apologized for prodding but had to prod a little more. "Did you love him?"

"Oh, Darren?"

Leslie had been able to talk about him for a couple years now without crying. Not to mention she was desperate to pry some personal information from Loki. Maybe if she gave some of hers, he would return the favor.

"Yes, I loved him dearly. We grew up together, you know. His father worked for my father back when daddy was CEO. I was more business savvy than tech savvy, but Darren, boy was he a whiz and a half. The two of us were a good team." Leslie lit up as she recalled the memories fondly. "He would come up with the greatest inventions but could never talk in front of crowds or make a sales pitch to save his life. I took care of all the schmoozing and presentations, made up for where his skill set left off."

Loki seemed troubled by her words. "You run the company now yet you do not understand the science behind what you make?"

"Well, it's a long story. I'm not the best person for the job. Truth be told, I want to get out of it. But I don't really know what I'd do with myself otherwise." She shrugged and continued. "I didn't really need to know the details for a while. Darren had that covered. He was also CEO. We had a very unconventional joint system that worked like a charm."

"Ah, I see. So that is why you crave attachment to Tony Stark." Suddenly Loki was becoming the psychiatrist for Leslie. She did not like it one bit.

_Oh, what a jerk! He just had to bring that up_. She wanted to dismiss his comment promptly but was too dead set on sticking firmly to her mission. _If I get personal with him, he might get personal with me._

"That's unrelated." Though she was not sure if she was lying to herself. Loki could actually be right. "I just have some stupid infatuation with him I guess. Until he settled down with Pepper he would sleep with anything that breathed. I guess you could say getting rejected by a playboy like that burned me deep."

"Ouch." Loki gave half a frown, almost as if he were ever-so-slightly sympathetic. "Not used to being cast off by those you love?"

Leslie sighed and folded her hands behind her back. "I guess so. Honestly can't say I'm used to the feeling."

"Pity." Loki emulated some sense of pain in his next words. "I wish I could say the same. I am all too used to that feeling."

_He opened up! So he has been through something, the poor guy._ "I'm so sorry to hear that. I bet you were a nice guy before you got your priorities outta wack." Leslie smiled and patted Loki on the shoulder in a gesture of kindness. "Don't be afraid to drop the jerk routine around me, okay? I won't go telling anyone you're a softie."

"Softie?" Loki narrowed his eyes at the word. "Surely you jest, mortal. Your view of me is disgustingly optimistic." _And yet… charming. Out of all people to attempt to appeal to my humanity, of course it would be this one. Ejlonwe, perhaps you are closer to me now in death after all._

"Yeah yeah, whatever you say." Leslie stopped as they had finally reached a polished white marble building. "Welcome to Lyrhon Incorporated, Loki."


	6. Axia's Origins

The two entered the building to a series of hellos from passing employees. Loki assumed that Leslie was very well liked by her employees. Even if she was hardly fit for her position she either hid that fact well or was skilled enough in other departments that it did not matter. _Regardless, she was not kidding. She really is not used to being unloved. How obnoxious._

Leslie led Loki over to a private elevator that took them down to one of the many subterranean levels in the complex. When the doors opened they were greeted with a bright white unpopulated laboratory boasting an arsenal of metallic technology.

"What it is you want me to help you with here? I shall warn you now I am very unfamiliar with Midgardian technology." He was staring down a strange circular network of tubes with one eyebrow propped up in confusion.

"First off, the device you're having a staring contest with is a particle accelerator. I can't build any of this stuff myself but I'm not totally dense to their names and uses." The brunette gave her ponytail a sassy little flip in pride. "You'll be helping me research and run tests on samples of Axiom."

"Which is…?"

"Another long story." Leslie sighed and sought how to put it briefly with little success. "It's a custom element only produced by my company. When my father still ran the company some years back he expressly refused the Board of Directors desires to delve into weapons technology. 'I'll always build fun over a gun,' he'd always say. We made a lot of standard consumer products like computers, mp3 players, and other harmless devices. Jeremy Wrustleman, one of the Directors, took it upon himself to open a network of secret research facilities outside of our main building. They researched, constructed and sold weapons using the Lyrhon name and rivaled Stark Industries for a fleeting minute. Their trump card was Axiom, a custom made element that was disgustingly durable and viciously toxic in several isotopes… err, forms."

_Right, keep this simple for him. He probably doesn't even know what an mp3 player is, let alone isotopes._

"Anyway, they wanted to give the company a facelift of sorts and to make it easier they decided to take my father out of the picture. They had him assassinated," she confessed grimly. "When Darren and I became the new CEOs we were next in line on their hit list. We refused to conform to their demands much like my father, and after months of tension an assassin was hired for us." Leslie folded her arms and tried to refrain from getting too emotional with all of this. Losing her father Lyle and Darren back-to-back was a wound that would never fully heal. "Darren died trying to protect me. The murderer they hired for the task stabbed him several times in front of me…"

Loki's mind painfully warped back to a memory at Leslie's words.

"Ejlonwe!" he had cried out as a pack of Frost Giants charged towards the both of them. "Watch out!"

The goddess whipped herself around, armed with a double edged sword in either hand, and speared a couple of the Giants before one got the better of her with his icy dagger of a hand.

"Loki, RUN!" she screamed out before dropping dead where she stood.

"With his last breath, he screamed for me to run, and I did," continued Leslie, dragging Loki back to reality once more.

_These parallels are disturbing_, he thought.

"I made it far, but not far enough. I collided with Jeremy Wrustleman himself and was promptly chloroformed… err, that is, knocked out. When I woke up I was in one of the secret weapons labs, strapped down to a board with all these tubes running into me. One of the demented scientists injected me with a brand new isotope of Axiom designed to poison me through my bloodstream. However," Leslie let a little confident smirk appear, "their research wasn't exactly thorough enough. They ended up creating their worst nightmare."

With one swift movement, Leslie spun around while bathed in a white light and ended up in the primarily black getup Loki became painfully familiar with during his encounter with The Avengers.

"My superheroine name Axia is derived from the Axiom element that gave me the powers in the first place. I exhibit a lot of personified characteristics of the element. Extreme durability and strength…"

Loki recalled how Leslie slammed into several objects during his battle with The Avengers that should have killed a typical mortal; cars, concrete walls, panes of glass, Chitauri vehicles and weaponry amongst a fanfare of other things.

"… the ability to conduct and produce electricity…"

He then recalled the bright electrical whips she had produced from her hands. He had a severe beating at the hands of them, he remembered with agony. Not as comparable as the Hulk trashing him around but still pitiful enough.

"… and now flight, thanks to some of my Stark tech upgrades."

This was new. She was definitely bound to the ground with Captain America and some of the others when the great battle had taken place. He did not want to know what more would have happened if she too could have flown like Stark and Thor.

"You seem to know the Axiom element thoroughly. Why research it anymore?" asked a baffled Loki.

"Well, everything good has a downside somehow. When Wrustleman tried to have me poisoned it did work to some effect. I lose color in my skin and become ghost pale, have my hair fade to a washed out blonde and my eyes go grayish blue because I'm, in a sense, drained of life, when I tap into the Axiom within me."

Within an instant she had transformed back into the much less sickly looking Leslie he had spent the day with. "To assume the form for brief spans of time is fine. Returning to normal activates a regenerative process of sorts, and any damage I sustain internally is repaired in a timely manner. I want to figure out how to eliminate the Axiom's toxicity so I don't have to get paranoid while I'm transformed." She frowned a little and looked off to the side. "There have been times where I've stepped out of important fights because I couldn't be Axia anymore without killing myself. I don't like being so useless."

"Understandable enough, I suppose. I have no idea how you think I could be of any use. Midgardian chemistry is not a forte of mine any more than the technology is."

"Welcome to my life," laughed Leslie sadly. "I'm hopeless at chemistry too. Kind of makes my private research a little difficult. I can't ask for help either. No one really knows about the poisonous effect of the Axiom in me, and I plan on keeping it that way so I'm not excluded by others when I could be of use. Steve especially would be the kind of guy to tell me, 'sit this one out, Les' in his chivalric ways."

"Oh, the good ol' Captain," muttered Loki with displeasure.

"Hey, don't hate on him, he's a nice guy!" scolded Leslie. "Pardon him for trying to save the world he loves."

Loki said nothing to that.

"I figured we could read over some of the notes I confiscated from the rouge labs. Most of it is lost on me but Thor told me you studied sorcery intensely for years in Asgard and complex notes were no challenge for you."

"Oh how cute, he talks about me." Loki was seething with sarcasm. "Did the bumbling idiot neglect to tell you that Asgardian sorcery is completely unrelated to Midgardian chemistry?" he retorted flatly.

"Of course I know they're different, I figured as much, but still. I need a smart guy's help here."

Loki sighed hopelessly and held out his hand for some notes. He had appreciated the compliment of his intellect. "I shall see what I can do."

Beaming with optimism, Leslie picked up a packet of notes and gave them to the god to dissect before grabbing a set for herself.

…

…

…

"Your realm's science is boggling," commented Loki after the two had spent several hours studying notes in silence.

It had been so long without a single noise that his words made Leslie jump a little. "Oh, yeah, I know. It's super tricky. I wish I inherited my parents' abilities in this respect."

"Both parents were geniuses? I do not believe you have said a word about your mother."

"And you haven't said a word about your life at all," replied Leslie coldly. "I was an open book for you all morning. But if you really want to know, her name was Rhonda. She founded Lyrhon Incorporated with my father Lyle, hence the name." Leslie frowned in mourning. "She passed a long time ago… breast cancer of all things. I was only twelve."

"I am sorry you have come to know such loss in youth." Loki's comment seemed genuine enough. "You are still fairly young yet."

"It's amazing what some people can go through I guess." Leslie's next words unintentionally struck a nerve. "Must be nice to at least have your parents still around. Thor always says such nice things about them. Your father especially sounds like a great King."

"Oh really?" sneered Loki in disgust. "How much do you converse with that oaf? You seem to be fond of bringing him up."

"We talk often actually for two people living on separate planets. Whenever he comes to Earth we make it a point to get together."

"Lovely," he scoffed. "For the record, those are Thor's parents and Thor's parents _alone_. In all his ramblings I wonder if he neglected to tell you of my true parentage."

"Oh no, he told me that too," confessed Leslie. "Sorry, I didn't know it was a sore topic. He left _that _detail out."

"Naturally he would. In the technical sense, they are my adoptive parents. In the sentimental sense, they are nothing more than strangers to me. I was a political pawn that became defunct when Thor decided to start a war for fun." There was a deep pain in his eyes that Leslie found unsettling.

_How awful, to be used like that. Loved under false pretenses? The damage that must have caused him! Though Thor seems to care about him at least. I'd bet my bottom dollar he's too hurt to register that fact. _Leslie frowned and placed her Axiom notes on a lab table off to her side.

"Is that why you started a war here? For fun, too?"

"Hardly. I am burdened with glorious purpose. The dejected son of one king adopted by another, yet deprived of the throne in either realm. I thought yours would suit me well, especially since that goliath that claims to be my brother was so enamored with it."

"How'd that work out for you?" teased Leslie with a playful grin.

Loki was less amused. "Cute."

An awkward silence followed but Loki decided to break it yet again.

"In any case, from what I can gather in these notes I shall be utterly useless to you. I can only deduce that the toxicity effect is permanent. Prolonged exposure is always going to hurt you. However…" Leslie glanced up at him expectantly. "One of these isotopes possesses a curious polarity configuration. There may be a chance that its polarity could cancel out the toxicity of your isotope's polarity."

Leslie stared at him in shock, mouth agape. "I thought you said that 'your realm's science is boggling' and you wouldn't be of help! I don't even understand half of what you just said!"

Loki groaned in mental pain. "In the name of the great Bifrost, how the _hell _do you run this company again?"

"Not well," confessed Leslie with embarrassment. "I'm honestly more of a figurehead that poses as a genius. Wish it didn't have to be that way."

Much to Leslie's surprise, Loki let out what sounded like pure hearted laughter, much less icy than any snickering she had ever heard from him before.

"You are quite a creature, Leslie," he got out between laughs. "I hardly understand you."

"Not sure if a 'thank you' or 'fuck you' is appropriate here." Leslie stared flatly at the amused god.

"Pretty sure the latter is more suitable." Loki finally calmed himself down, squandering the bizarre laughter. "Perhaps we have been in this room too long."

"Yeah, maybe we should grab lunch and stretch our legs around the city. Maybe later you can attempt to run some tests on your polarity theory."

"That may be beyond my capabilities, but I shall try my best in any case." Loki offered a small smile to Leslie as the two walked back to the elevator to leave for a lunch break.

_For a wretched mortal that would dare taunt me by her Ejlonwe-esque appearance… I admit she is rather pleasant company. Perhaps… a friend?_

_For an alien psychopath that would dare try to take over my planet… I admit he's kind of growing on me. Maybe we could even be friends?_


	7. SHIELD And The Benefit

_**Quick Note**_

**Oh my gosh! Thank you to all the people who have added this story to their alerts or favorites! I am beyond thankful for this. I posted the first six chapters back-to-back since they were finished so here in seven is my first chance to say thank you! Please don't hesitate to REVIEW as well, both positive or negative! OC centric stories are often Mary Sue/Gary Stu oriented disasters and I am trying very hard to avoid that while still exploring friendship and romance lightly. I'd love love love any feedback regardless if it's praise or scolding. Anything helps! The majority of tedious back story is out of the way so expect things to pick up shortly.**

**Also note that I'm now accepting anonymous reviews! Just registered like three days ago so I didn't realize that setting was turned off. Sorry!**

**Now, onto what you're actually here for.**

The next couple weeks were perhaps the most confusing yet wonderful weeks Loki had ever spent on Earth. He would let his guard down in limited doses around Leslie who, in return, would offer personal stories of her own and attempt to show her vulnerability. She had no interesting in parading around as an invincible threat to him. In fact, she seemed fond of doing the opposite. The god found it refreshing.

"It is a wonder you ever defeated me at all," joked Loki reluctantly over dinner one evening.

Leslie laughed at the joke. "Hey, no one's perfect. Not even the divine."

Loki gave a subtle smile at that last comment.

Most of their time together was spent in the subterranean Lyrhon laboratories. It took a bit of practice before either of the two was able to perform even simple tests on the element. It peeved Loki slightly when Leslie had been the first to run an electricity test without causing a fire. _He _had been the smart one, right?

"How ironic your company now produces the element people died to fight against," Loki commented during one research session.

"Yeah, you wouldn't think it makes sense but that was _my _idea after we uncovered the Directors' coup and exposed them to the media… and jail." Leslie gave a confident little smirk. "It probably kills them since we use Axiom for defense and fun. Our involvement at war stops at shields and armor. We use the rest for our durable electronics. Apple and Microsoft only _wish _they had their hands on this tainted science. You can't drop one of their laptops from the top of a ten story building and have it survive. Ours hardly get scratched and are fully functional. Not to mention, they're not _that _much more expensive than the competition. A couple hundred dollar difference keeps people interested."

"Why merge with Stark's company then?" Loki had become familiar with cell phones, laptops and other common mortal toys over time. "He makes energy, not entertainment."

"Exactly!" Leslie had smoothed things over with Stark to some degree. The two were moving forward with the merger thanks to unanimous Board approval. Still, any conversations not concerning business were limited at best. "If we could produce self sustaining devices we could revolutionize so much more! We're very close to buying out a couple car companies right now. With a new automotive tech division we could start producing self sufficient vehicles and clean up the environment a bit by eliminating toxic emissions. Even the cell phones we make would be cleaner with Stark's tech."

"You seem rather hell bent on saving the world." Loki's tone was a bit difficult to discern.

"I wanna do what I can while I'm here. I'd bet you millions of people wish they could be in my position just to have some impact on the world." Leslie shrugged with a simple smile. "I try to do them justice."

Before Loki could say anything in response a high-pitched ringing echoed around the lab.

"Oh, sorry! Gotta get that." Leslie pulled out her cell phone and answered. "Leslie Leonards! … Oh, really? When? … _Tonight_? I love the notice… Yeah, no, I can go… If you say so…" Her eyes drifted to Loki with a smile. "… put me down as a plus one while you're at it." She hung up and returned the phone to her pocket.

"What are you dragging me to?" groaned Loki in preemptive disdain.

"A party of sorts. It's a celebration of the buyout that just happened. We got one of the major car companies!" Leslie gave a triumphant fist pump. "That and it's also a benefit for one of the charities they supported over the years. My company's adopting the charity in a good faith gesture and making a sizeable donation. I kind of have to be there."

"So naturally you drag me along." Loki smiled and shrugged. "Guess it should be tolerable."

…

…

…

Loki seemed to enjoy the limo ride on the way to the benefit. Horses rather than cars were the rides of Asgard. He had seen plenty vehicles on Earth but truth be told he had only been in a few. This was his first limo, and like most children, he marveled at the luxurious space.

"You could live in here if necessary," he remarked in astonishment as he poked about the mini bar.

"I suppose so?" Leslie laughed at how weird Loki was being. "If I was gonna live in a car though I'd just go get an RV!"

"RV?" Loki produced a small bottle of top shelf vodka from the mini bar and began fixing himself a drink. "Your mortal references always lose me."

"It stands for recreational vehicle. It's like a small mobile house. They're fantastic for long road trips."

"Fascinating." Loki tried to imagine how tying the amenities of a dwelling space to a horse would bode. _Not well_, he concluded at once. "Would you like a drink as well?"

"I'll take a spring water on the rocks," she joked. "No alcohol for me please. I need to be professional tonight."

Loki handed her one of the tiny water bottles. "Are you giving a speech?"

"Probably a brief statement but it's primarily just going to be…" Leslie suddenly froze in horror as she realized something. _OH. MY. GOD._

Just at that moment, the limo came to a stop and the driver came around to open the door. A series of bright camera flashes began going off. The event had a red carpet that roped off hungry paparazzi, most of which wanted to talk more about Axia and The Avengers than any corporate jib jab.

"I forgot about PHOTOS!" she shouted incredulously at herself. It was already too late. Even though they were still inside the vehicle, Leslie and Loki had been captured on both film and worse yet – by a live television camera.

_SHIELD will know he's here! Oh god, oh god, OH GOD. _Leslie tried to keep herself from shaking in panic and got out of the limo at once. Any more delaying would look strange to the waiting reporters. The bright flashes made her glitter laden violet ball gown sparkle but blinded her eyes just the same. Loki was beside her in a moment, clad handsomely in a designer Italian three piece suit Leslie had purchased for him earlier that day.

"We're screwed," she whispered to him as they made their way towards the event hall. She calmly waved at reporters and stopped momentarily for pictures here and there. Still, she refused to answer or acknowledge any of their questions.

"Should I brace myself for gunfire?" he whispered back, having realized instantly what Leslie was so afraid of.

Leslie swallowed hard. "I'd be more afraid of arrows than bullets if I were you."

The two hurried the last of the walk and got into the hall. Neither of them felt comfortable being out in the open air with inevitable forces on the way. Leslie drummed her fingers nervously on her silver clutch purse, debating what to do.

"Dance with me," she blurted out suddenly, grabbing Loki by the arm and pulling him onto the already crowded ballroom floor.

Gently holding one another in classic ballroom manner, the two moved lightly about the dance floor at a slow pace, trying to cover a minimal amount of ground.

"What will you do when they arrive for me?" _Turn me in and be on your merry way I suppose_, he thought to himself miserably.

"Defend you adamantly," she answered much to his surprise.

"Oh." Loki swallowed and gave a little gracious nod. "Thank you… very much."

Leslie smiled softly at the god who returned the gesture with a sweet one of his own. It was the biggest smile she had seen him sport yet.

_There you go_, she thought gladly. _I knew you could do it._

"If they do haul me off though, perhaps I should tell you something now." Loki bit his bottom lip nervously. He made no secret of his vulnerability around Leslie anymore.

"What is it? Everything alright?"

"I am not entirely sure myself, but…" The two had suddenly stopped dancing in the crowd of couples. "I just want you to know that—"

_VVVRROOOMM!_

A thunderous force echoed through the hall as a SHIELD helicopter landed on the roof. The skylight opened up as a familiar cast of characters dropped down into the scene. Natasha Romanoff and Clint Barton flanked Nick Fury, poised and ready to leap into action. A number of SHIELD agents formed a protective halo around them. There was zero chance at an escape.

"Release your hostage now and make this easy," snapped Natasha. She trained her pistol on Loki's skull.

"What hostage?" Loki snapped back. "_She _dragged _me _here."

"I bet!" growled Barton as he drew his bow. "Let her go and you won't need to know what it's like to have an arrow in your eye socket."

"I'm _not _his hostage!" Leslie was angered by the assumption. "I brought him here myself."

"Oh really now?" Nick Fury stared down Leslie with his one eye. "How long have you been in his company, Leonards?"

Leslie twiddled her fingers in a bit of nervousness. _No point in lying to these guys. They'd find out the truth soon enough_. "About a couple weeks, give or take a few days?"

"You don't say!" Fury was livid in his mocking manner. "You and I will have a nice chat later about this later while you're inside your cell."

"You're arresting me?"

"No, of course not. I'm arresting _both_ of you."

_KKKKRRRROOOOOOMM!_

The scene was suddenly interrupted by another thunderous noise, this one much more familiar to Loki. Crashing through the ceiling with total disregard to the structure came Thor, wielding Mjolnir in all its threatening glory.

"That's enough!" boomed the Asgardian wonder.

"Thor, what is your brother doing here?" demanded Natasha.

"He has been ordered by the Asgardian probation council to perform acts of repentance on Earth as part of his punishment. Heimdall has witnessed many acts of him assisting Leslie without trickery or evil." Thor held out Mjolnir in a pointed gesture to Fury. "You have no cause to arrest neither her nor my brother."

"We appreciate the notification," grumbled Fury. "Next time your people decide to use our world in some kind of rehab plan, send us a fax at least?"

Thor tilted his head in confusion.

"Tell us ahead of time," clarified Barton with a flat look.

"Oh, yes of course. That was our mistake, and for that we apologize."

"If you all wouldn't mind…" Leslie interjected, "I was in the middle of a celebration. I'd like to get back to that."

"Not so fast, Leonards." Fury got closer to relay his warning. "We _will _be keeping an eye on the two of you. Especially 'real power' over here," he motioned to Loki with his head.

"I understand," muttered Loki.

"Fine," groaned Leslie impatiently. "Just do me a favor and eyeball us at a distance? I don't need agents tailgating my every move. You owe me that much, Fury."

"I owe _you_, Leonards. Not the stick wielding alien you're friends with these days."

Leslie folded her arms and glared him intensely.

"But," continued Fury, "we'll mind our distance."

"I appreciate it." She grinned sarcastically wide. "Have a nice night, now!"

Barton rolled his eyes and grabbed the rope he slid in on, lifting himself up and out of the complex. Fury quickly did the same. Natasha walked over to Leslie before parting with the rest of them.

"You better watch your back, Les. I mean it. You trust people too easily."

"C'mon Tasha, I'll be fine!" Leslie gave a playful nudge to Loki. "The psycho's actually been helping me out a lot. I'm glad he came."

Loki blushed lightly at the comical compliment and tried to mask his smile.

"Guess you'd have to be there," mused an unimpressed Natasha. "If he steps even one hair out of line you know who to call."

"Always do," said Leslie as Natasha departed with the rest of SHIELD.

Most of the partygoers were backed away, hesitant to be near the scene that had unfolded around them. The band that had stopped playing hesitantly resumed their music and the party slowly resumed along with the orchestra.

Thor approached Leslie and Loki with a beaming grin. "Heimdall says you two complement each other in your struggles."

"What?" Leslie covered her face a little with her hand to hide her blushing. Loki merely looked off in another direction entirely. "I suppose we're making progress in our own ways."

"Indeed you are. I am glad my brother is once more capable of smiling for the right reasons." Thor quickly turned from glad to sullen. "I am however sorry to learn of your situation, Leslie. I did not know your powers could kill you."

"Thanks Heimdall," muttered Leslie to herself before giving an apathetic look towards Thor. "Eh, is what it is. I'm doing what I can. Loki's been invaluable with all of it really." The God of Mischief grinned inwardly at the compliment. "Just do me a favor and keep that a secret from the rest of the guys? I don't want to be benched when I'm needed, god forbid we have to assemble again."

"I understand. Consider the secret kept." Thor gave Leslie a quick hug. "I must be off. I simply came to intervene on your behalf. I have much to attend to in Asgard."

He then moved to Loki and offered a manly hand to his brother for a shake. Loki reluctantly humored him but showed no signs of enjoyment.

"Brother, I shall see you in due time."

"Yes, for my hearing. I know." Loki rolled his eyes. "Do not remind me, Thor."

"Farewell then!" With a few swings of Mjolnir, Thor was up and out through the hole he created. A thunderous noise implied that he had traveled back to Asgard.

Just as if nothing had happened the dance floor became crowded with couples once more. The orchestra's sweet music poured through the air and restored the rest of the atmosphere that had been damaged. Loki resumed his dance with Leslie, no words need be exchanged.


	8. Sleepovers & Truth Or Dare

_**Quick Note**_

**Thank you again to the new favorites and alerts! I'm glad to see people are actually reading this – and hopefully enjoying it too. Just a reminder to please submit reviews! These can help the writing process immensely. I'll know what to focus on or what to veer away from.**

**You do NOT have to be a registered member to review this fanfic!**

**Also, just to clarify – Ejlonwe is pronounced Ey-lon-way.  
Just think of the "j" in Mjolnir, Thor's hammer. Same kinda Nordic jazz, haha.**

…

…

…

Leslie took her time getting ready for bed. So much was happening, it was a wonder her brain could keep up. Loki Laufeyson was living in her penthouse. Her company was merging with Stark Industries. Nick Fury had SHIELD watching her every move. And worse, she was starting to like Loki enough to want _friendship_ with the bastard.

_I wonder how long he's been so misunderstood_, she thought as she prepped her bed for what would most likely be a sleepless night. _I'd probably be good friends with him if he weren't so damned evil._

A light rap came at her door but she was too lost in thought to hear it.

_Hm, no, maybe evil isn't the right word? … Wait, no, it is. He killed thousands of people and tried to take over the world. How the hell do I have to keep reminding myself of that?_

Another light knock sounded. "Um, Leslie?"

_I guess because he's nice sometimes at least. I know he wouldn't be helping me if it wasn't for that probationary council but still. There's something more here. There has to be._

The next knock was louder. "Leslie, please wake up!"

"Huh?" The young woman blinked and popped back into reality. She opened the door slowly to reveal a depressed looking Loki. She yawned and propped herself up against the doorframe. "Everything alright, psycho?"

_That pet name needs to go_, thought Loki with an inward groan. He fidgeted a bit in apprehension of how to phrase his thoughts.

"I, uh, was hoping you were up."

"Well… I am." Leslie quirked a brow at him.

He hesitated again. "Are you going to bed now?"

"I was gonna try. Why?"

With a heavy sigh Loki folded his arms and looked at the ground. "I can't sleep," he confessed. "I, um… do not wish to be alone right now."

_Okay, this is definitely progress. He might be a psycho but at least he isn't now._

"Oh…" Leslie opened her door fully and motioned lazily at her bedroom. "Come on in. I haven't had a sleepover in years."

"Sleep over _what_? Is it not a bed you rest on?"

Leslie had to laugh out loud. Clearly the Asgardian had never been to a slumber party.

"It's an Earth thing," she explained. "When two or more friends get together in pajamas and spend the night in the same place it's called a sleepover."

"Are we friends?" he asked bluntly.

"Um…" Leslie tilted her head a bit. "I mean, I'm okay with that if you are." Her brain was having a hard time absorbing everything when it came to Loki. Logic said to hate him yet her heart said to give him a hug.

Loki was taken back immensely by her words. _She wants to be my friend… out of her own choosing? No coercion? No threats? _He kept his expression cool as ice, refusing to give her the satisfaction of a happy reaction.

"Sure, I don't mind." He smiled very faintly. "Out of all the pathetic mortals I have encountered on this wretched planet, you are the most tolerable."

_... Was that supposed to be a compliment? _She tried not to scoff at the god's good intentions and kept herself mellow.

"You're growing on me strangely enough," she mused with half a smile.

Loki looked down at himself in his shorts and a robe, more borrowed items from Darren's closet. "It seems I have pajamas covered. What else does a sleepover entail?"

"Well, anything really. You could watch movies or bake or play games like truth-or-dare, or sometimes you can just stay up all night talking about anything that comes to mind."

"Let's do all of it!" he declared with determination. "I have done more work than anything else since I have been here. Perhaps a cultural experience in order."

Leslie could hardly contain herself. Was the God of Mischief honestly asking to have a sleepover with one of The Avengers? This was the stuff of fiction!

"Alright then, let's do this!" Leslie began to compile a list of quintessential sleepover activities, most of which were rather juvenile. "I say we start with… A PILLOW FIGHT!"

In one sudden motion Leslie snatched a pillow off her bed and beat Loki to the ground with it. Her laughter was cut short by a fierce counterattack that sent her flying into her dresser.

"I shall win this battle!" cried Loki in absolute seriousness. He held a pillow high above his head. "Prepare to lose, mortal! All shall kneel before me!"

"Oh dear lord," she muttered as she pulled herself up from the ground. "You've brought this upon yourself, Asgardian!"

In a quick flash she tapped into her Axiom and lunged onto the god, sending both of them clear through her bedroom wall into the rec room next door. She pinned her pillow to his chest and laughed as he squirmed beneath it.

"That's not fair! I've been stripped of my powers!"

"Not my problem!" Leslie smirked down at him. "Next time you wanna take over my planet, _think it through_ a little harder. Now say I win."

"FINE! You are the victor!" he exclaimed in anger.

Leslie subdued the Axiom, released him, and got to her feet. She grimaced at the hole in the wall. _How ironic. I was the one that took it too far._

Loki was soon at her side. He gave a flat look at the hole and then to her. "I'm not liable for that."

"That was my stupid fault," she laughed in embarrassment. "No biggie. I'll hire someone to fix that tomorrow. What would you like to do next?"

"What was that baking thing you mentioned before? Do we get to roast things in fire?" Loki gave a pleasured look at the thought.

"Uhhh… sort of!" Leslie grinned awkwardly. "We'd do that downstairs."

…

…

…

"Surely you jest!"

Loki was miserably covered in flour. Baking had been an absolute disaster. Leslie had taught him her ideal term for the situation – a "shit show".

"I'm serious! It's not that hard! Just crack the damn egg!" For the fourth time, Leslie demonstrated egg cracking over the sink. "Be _gentle_."

Loki took the egg and rammed it into the side of the mixing bowl. It smeared all over his hands. "I absolutely despise this." He hated the smiley feeling between his fingers.

"I'm commandeering egg duty from now on." Leslie shook her head and cracked two eggs perfectly into the bowl for the recipe. "Can you handle mixing this?"

The god was fuming mad. He gave the bowl a chilling death glare.

"Okay, nevermind." Leslie began mixing the contents together with a level of grace Loki would never obtain. "You're at least putting in the chocolate chips."

He grabbed the bag of mini Hershey's Kisses and opened one end. "I just pour these in?"

"Gradually, yes, while I'm mixing. Whenever you're ready."

Loki slowly added the kisses into the mixture while Leslie stirred. The look of concentration on his face was astounding to her. _Goodness. He finds one thing he can actually do right and then treats it like it's brain surgery. There are genuinely no words to describe this._

"You're incredible," she muttered to herself with a snicker.

"What was that?" Loki placed the now empty chocolate bag in the trash.

"Oh, nothing! They're ready to be rolled now." She reached her hand into the dough and made a little ball. "Just roll it and place it on the pan like so."

The two rolled the dough in silence until all the pans were filled. Leslie put them in the oven and set the timer for fifteen minutes.

"Now they say you're not supposed to do this but…" She dragged one finger across a patch of dough still stuck to the inside of the mixing bowl and ate it. "Honestly, who listens to that rule anyway!"

Loki did the same and found the concoction delicious. "Why is this forbidden? It seems harmless enough." _Strange customs these Earthlings have._

The brunette had turned around to wash her hands in the sink and begin cleaning off some of the utensils. "It's because you use raw eggs in the mixture. Eggs can have salmonella. That's a disease." She vigorously scrubbed off some spoons and measuring cups. "If you eat a lot of it you can get sick and—"

Leslie turned around to pick up the mixing bowl but froze in place. Loki had been licking the inside of it, determined to eat all of the excess dough.

"Well…" Loki pulled his head out of the bowl and it over sheepishly. "If I drop dead later at least you shall know why."

"You won't _die_," groaned Leslie as she tossed the bowl in the sink. "I'll clean up here. You go pick out a movie from the library over there." She gestured to the bookshelf full of DVDs in the adjoining living room.

The god brushed most of the excess flour off of his robe and meandered over to the bookshelf. He looked curiously at the DVDs in their cases. He assumed they were much like books as they had titles on their spines. Half of the titles confused him immensely. _Pearl Harbor, A Night At The Roxbury, Saving Private Ryan, Maid in Manhattan… _Most of them referenced what he assumed were people or places in Midgard. One particular movie caught his eye.

"What is this _Titanic_ movie?" He pulled the DVD off of the shelf and popped the case open. Instead of finding pages he was greeted with a peculiar disc.

"Seriously?" Leslie turned off the faucet and wiped her hands dry before joining him by the bookshelf. "Out of all the movies you could choose, you go with _Titanic_? You're priceless."

"Why, is there something wrong with it? It says here it won awards."

"Don't get me wrong – it's a classic!" Leslie tried to recap the gist of it. "The Titanic is a ship that existed in real life. On its maiden voyage it hits an iceberg and sinks. Hundreds of people died. The movie follows the fictional characters of Jack and Rose who—"

"It sounds perfect!" Loki mused in a creepy tone. "A real life tragedy, hm? I wish to watch this." He handed the DVD to her forcibly.

Leslie sighed. "If you insist." _He is going to hate this movie when he realizes what it is._

She turned on her massive HD TV and put the DVD in before returning to the kitchen to check on the cookies. When she came back she hit "play" on the menu and let the movie begin.

"Cookies are cooling on the countertop. We can have a snack break later. This movie's like _three _hours or something so you'll probably want to pause."

"And disrupt all the torture and agony? Perish the thought." Loki leaned back on the couch grinning with contentment. "We will not stop until it is over."

…

…

…

Leslie was curled up in a ball at the opposite end of the couch, a blanket pulled up to her eyes. She was no stranger to sexual matters but something about watching Jack sketch Rose nude with Loki two feet away from her was mortifying. It was just around an hour and a half in.

"Mortal garbage!" Loki shouted abruptly.

Poking her head out from above the covers, she refused to make any eye contact with Loki until the scene changed.

"Not a fan?" she asked once the movie had moved on.

"You promised me tragedy and death. We have been watching this _forever_ and yet they all still live! Happily, no less!"

_Oh my good god!_ Leslie slapped the palm of her hand to her forehead. "You disturbing bastard," she muttered. "Give it a bit longer. It's coming."

Ten minutes later Jack and Rose were in a car in the storage hold. Nearly everyone knew this famous scene. _I am NOT watching this with him!_ Leslie got up immediately and headed for the kitchen.

"Snack break for me! Be back in ten!" She grabbed a cookie and wandered far enough away to keep an ear on the audio. Once the coast was clear she returned to the couch with a cookie for Loki.

The god accepted the snack and ate it happily. "This is better than the damn movie," he sneered before going back to watching it. Leslie snorted and shook her head.

Loki rolled his eyes as Jack and Rose came running out of the cargo hold laughing like cheerful idiots.

"_When the ship docks… I'm getting off with you."_

"_This is crazy."_

"_I know! This doesn't make any sense! … That's why I trust it."_

There they went kissing again. Leslie had always loved this movie but she was getting a new found hatred for all the love centric scenes. _Screw you Jack and Rose_, she thought with a scowl. Her gaze found its way to Loki who was curiously looking back at her.

"Something you wanna share?" She was not amused by his face at all.

"No, no." Loki looked down at the ground for a moment. "Not right now anyway."

The two resumed watching the movie in awkward silence until the iceberg was spotted. Loki grinned devilishly while Leslie rolled her eyes and went back to a curled up ball on her end of the couch. _Now he'll finally stop complaining_.

…

…

…

Leslie let out a sigh of relief as the credits rolled. She couldn't take much more of Loki's disturbing laughter while people died nor is complaining when they didn't. She turned off the TV and motioned for the halls.

"This concludes your stay at Leonards Cinema. We hope you had a good time." She was seething with sarcasm. Loki got up to follow her through the halls and back towards her bedroom.

"I may have hated the wench at first but I rather like Rose now," mused Loki.

_Oh lord, this I have to hear._ "What made you change your mind?"

"When they were all in the water and she was holding onto Jack… remember that piece of debris she was on?" Leslie nodded. "There was _definitely _room for two."

The brunette's eyes widened at the statement. "You're kidding."

"Watch it again sometime if you don't believe me. Jack could have fit. They could have left to America alive and had lots of pathetic ugly little babies together." Loki grinned. "Yet she let him drown in the frigid waters instead. Not a half bad wench after all."

Leslie gave him a blank stare as they walked into her bedroom. "I will never understand your brain. _Ever_."

The Asgardian chuckled to himself. "It is quite entertaining to see you try."

He slipped the robe off of his body and tossed it onto a coat rack before jumping onto the bed. Leslie had to stare for a minute – he was dressed in nothing but a pair of black shorts. Psychopathic alien or not, he _was _undoubtedly attractive.

"What shall we do next, then?" He seemed much to chipper for 4:00 AM.

Leslie was exhausted and craved sleep more than anything. _If I say 'lights out' though he'll probably pitch a fit._ Flopping herself onto the other half of her bed, she stared lazily over to him and gave a half-hearted, "a round or two of truth-or-dare?"

"What mortal mischief is this?" he grinned in expectancy.

"You take turns challenging other people with the question, 'Truth or Dare?' If they say 'Truth' you have to ask them a question and they're bound to answer honestly. If they say 'Dare' you have to give them some sort of task to perform. If you lie to a Truth or don't perform a Dare you have to pay whatever penalty the player comes up with."

"Splendid game!" Loki seemed ready to go. "I want to go first."

"Yep, sure thing." Leslie yawned and tried to stay awake. "Truth or dare?"

"Hmm… let's try a dare."

_I dare you to go the hell to bed_, she thought to herself angrily. "How about… I dare you to dance like an idiot for thirty seconds."

Loki grimaced. "And if I refuse?"

"You have to go to bed," she said bluntly.

Much to her dismay Loki would rather dance than dream. He got up and stood before the foot of the bed. She had to laugh a little at what he thought constituted dancing. It looked like he was having muscle spasms, not getting his groove on.

"Done!" he exclaimed once the thirty seconds had passed. He returned to his place on the bed and smirked at the half-asleep American. "Truth or dare?"

"Truth," she mumbled, too lazy to get out of bed.

Loki seemed to take a good amount of time to concoct a question worth asking. With the most sinister of expressions he leaned over and whispered, "If I asked to bed you, would you accept?"

Leslie woke up instantly, eyes wide and cheeks burning red. _Did he just ask if I'd sleep with him? Oh my GOD! _"A-And if I refuse to answer?"

"You must kiss me." He gave her a cheeky wink. "Hardly that evil of a punishment. Consider yourself lucky."

The brunette scowled at his trickery. There was no way to avoid the subject. Either answer the question or kiss him.

"If it satisfies you to know at all, I would reject you flatly."

Loki was silent for a moment. He wore a slightly upset expression.

"Oh. Is that so?"

"Yes. It is."

Leslie flipped over on her side, putting her back to the Asgardian psycho. She pulled some covers up around her and squirmed about until she was comfortable. Loki was just about to get up and leave defeated when he heard a slurred and tired, "truth or dare?"

_Strange, I suppose we are still playing_. "I shall go with truth this time."

"The whole reason you're here in my room," started Leslie in a slow voice laced with sleep, "was because you said you didn't want to be alone." Loki blushed and looked down even though Leslie could not see him. "Tell me the truth… what was wrong?"

"I, um…" The god shifted himself about a little and pulled covers around him too. Suddenly he preferred to go to bed and end the games as well. "If you must know, I was having a good time this evening with you at the benefit." He paused. "I haven't enjoyed someone's company like that in so long. I was afraid that when I woke up tomorrow… you might be gone."

Leslie was already fast asleep and never caught a word of his answer. At the sound of her very light snoring he could smile in relief. She missed it all. True to form, he had fulfilled his title as the God of Lies. That was not the entire story.

_I felt like I was with you Ejlonwe… for the first time in years. I just could not let that go._


	9. Changes, Changes, Changes

_**Quick Note**_

**Writing this is becoming part of my daily life. May or may not have dreamt up ideas for future chapters while sleeping.**

**My life is a joke.**

**I tried to make the previous chapter comical because we're about to hit a drama patch. Note that I changed the "romance" label of this story to "friendship" because honestly it's a lot more fitting. The feel of the first chapter Down In Mexico is _short_ lived. So there is romance, but temporarily I guess? The next few chapters shall explain this, no worries! There's always trouble in paradise.**

**Slight warning – some strong language is present in this chapter.**

…

…

…

Tony Stark got out of his flashy red Bugatti and stared down the entryway to Leslie's complex. He called her cell phone five times this morning. No answer. _That isn't like her_, he thought worriedly. _I will throw her off the top of this building if I have to_.

SHIELD had delivered a disturbing message yesterday evening.

"I'm gonna need you to keep an eye on Leonards," Nick Fury had told him over video conference. Stark was muddling around with the latest War Machine model in his workshop. Fury hardly had his attention.

"What, she's up to no good?" joked Stark. He rarely took anything seriously.

Fury grunted. "This isn't time for antics, Stark. Leonards is paling around with Loki."

Stark dropped the tool he was working with. "She's doing _what_…?" An angry CEO was now giving Fury his full attention. "How the hell did she get to Asgard in the first place?"

"She didn't. Loki's here on Earth again." Fury explained the probation process and his concerns about safety. "Thor insists everything's been fine but he likes to believe in his brother a little too much for my tastes. We're issuing a security detail but I'd like you to be an extra pair of eyes for us."

"I'll beat common sense into her if necessary," growled Stark. He had no patience with Loki ever since the havoc he wrought on Midtown.

It was the next morning when the still fuming CEO took the elevator up to Leslie's penthouse and impatiently rang the doorbell.

Silence.

"Leslie! Open up!"

Still nothing.

Grumbling, Stark flipped open the little security keypad outside her door and punched in the entry code. He barreled inside expecting the worst. Instead he was greeted by an empty foyer. Further inside he found just as empty of a living room and kitchen, though there were semi-fresh baked cookies on the countertop.

"She was here recently," he muttered as he examined one of the cookies.

Munching on the dessert, he forayed into the mess of hallways until he came upon her bedroom door. A pounding knock stirred both a dead asleep Leslie and Loki into semi consciousness.

"Leslie! You in there?"

Stark tossed the door open to discover a scene worse than he could have imagined. Leslie and Loki were just opening their eyes. The sight of Stark made Leslie draw in a sharp gasp. She shot completely upright and tried to smooth out her messy hair. Loki shot up just as fast out of reflexes, still shirtless from the night before.

"You've got to be _fucking kidding me_!" snapped Stark in outrage.

"Tony! What are you doing here?" Leslie climbed out of bed and ran over to meet him at the door in a panic. "I _swear _it's not what it looks like!"

"I know what this looks like. I've been down this road many times before." He shot a glare over Leslie's shoulder at Loki. "You dirty son of a bitch."

"Good morning to you too," sneered Loki. He got out of bed lazily as if nothing were wrong and grabbed one of Leslie's many brushes to fix his hair. He produced a plain white t-shirt out of Darren's closet and slid it on before joining Leslie in the doorway.

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't knock your teeth in," threatened Stark to Loki.

"Oh, have I done something worth punishment?" Loki smirked intently trying to piss the CEO off. "I don't think it was a crime."

"Loki, knock it off." Leslie was not up for screwing with her future co-worker. "Tony, I swear nothing happened between us. We just fell asleep!"

"Even if that _was_ true, which it _isn't_, why have you been hanging out with him? What makes that even remotely okay?" Tony sent a punch into the doorframe before catching a horrific sight in his periphery – that gaping hole in the wall. His jaw nearly detached.

Leslie and Loki's eyes followed Stark's gaze.

"Hm, yes, _that _was quite a bit of fun," mused the Asgardian.

It took a second for Stark's brain to formulate coherent thoughts again. "I… I just…"

Leslie sighed in frustration. "He's messing with you, Tony. I swear it's not what you think. I've been letting him stay here because he really is helping me like he's supposed to."

"Oh, I bet he is."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"You're smart, you can figure it out."

"Why do you even _care_ anyway? I thought you only _liked_ me, remember?"

Loki enjoyed watching the two of them bicker back and forth.

"I care about you as a friend, Leslie! Isn't that enough for me to be concerned when you make terrible life choices?"

"It's obnoxious when the pot calls the kettle black." Leslie gave a dirty look towards Stark, completely fed up with his attitude.

"Those days are over. You _know _I'm a loyal man now." It was an intentional jab at Leslie's antics a couple weeks ago… and she didn't like it one bit.

"You know, even though I didn't do anything with him I'm kind of wishing I did now," retorted Leslie with malice. "I'm so up-to-here with you that it'd be worth it just to watch you squirm in anger."

Loki's eyes widened at the hissy statements Leslie was tossing around. _This might be something of a turn on, _he thought to himself comically.

"Damn it Leslie, you're even talking like him now!"

"So what if I am!" Leslie shoved Stark and watched him stumble back a few steps. "You have no right to lecture me on morals."

Stark was about three seconds away from sending Leslie through a wall. "You need to listen to me, Leonards. You shouldn't be hanging around that psychopath. He's a criminal! He's a liar! He's a MURDERER!"

"So were _you _once upon a time," spat Leslie. It was a very cold jab at Stark Industries' weapons heyday. "People can _change_, damn it. You know that lesson better than most."

"People like me can. People like _him_ can't. There's a difference between narcissism and psychosis. For god's sake, just—"

Leslie shut him up by grabbing Loki by the collar and pulling him in for a passionate kiss. She meant nothing deep by it – just a harsh attack at Stark's lecturing. She'd heard enough and wanted him to leave. And she'd figured this would be a good way to get the job done.

She pulled away after a moment and glared at Stark with anger. Loki stood beside her in a strange confused-yet-pleased state of mind.

"I can take the hint." Stark brought himself mere inches away from Leslie when he growled, "Be happy the merger's soon because when it's complete I'll see to it your ass is out of a job. You're not fit to run anything, not even your own life."

"Piss off," she sneered back without flinching.

Without another word, an enraged Stark turned and left. It was a moment before he reached the main penthouse door. It slammed shut very, very loudly.

"Jackass!" screamed Leslie after Stark was long gone. "You can _take_ my damn company!" It was a few seconds before she noticed she was crying. Her face was soaked in hot tears.

"Forget him." Loki picked last night's robe off the coat rack and used it like a makeshift tissue on Leslie's face. "He isn't worth the anger."

"What are you doing?" she asked in a crackling voice. "You're not this compassionate."

"Not typically." He set the robe down and pulled her in for a comforting embrace. "I do not particularly care for how he treated you, that's all."

"This doesn't make any sense," whispered Leslie. She buried herself in his shoulder and held on tight. "You're the voice of reason in all of this? What's the world coming to?"

Loki chuckled and kissed the top of the brunette's head. Her morning hair was still a little messy but he did not seem to mind. "Sometimes things can change given the right circumstances."

Leslie looked up and smiled at the Asgardian. "I knew you could. I just knew it!"

At that moment a dangerous path was traveled down. The path was a wicked one, laden with lies and passions and half-truths that could kill. Leslie Leonards, though she did not fully realize it yet, had fallen in love with the monster of Asgard. She operated under the guise of hatred, using her anger at Stark to justify the feeling. The God of Lies and Mischief, however, was living up to his namesake in the fullest. He possessed some level of affection for the mortal but not for the reasons she assumed. In her eyes he saw Ejlonwe, and in her pain he felt a need to comfort it. Someway, somehow, he felt there must be a connection between this mortal and his lost love of old. Little did he know that his beliefs were futile and false founded. Leslie was a coincidence in appearance, a silly circumstance that that meant nothing deeper than her own existence. If it were not for this strange little parallel Loki would never have given Leslie so much as a passing glance. His apparent "compassion" was nothing more than his silver tongue doing what it did best – intentional manipulation.

In a flurry of confusion, of misunderstanding, of anger and one-sided love and longing, the two found themselves wrapped around each other – heated by nothing short of madness.

"I change my answer," she grunted out in between kisses, "from last night, I change it."

"So then if I asked now…" Loki was cut off by another kiss.

"I'd say yes!" Leslie grabbed him by the collar and ripped the shirt off with thrust. In one final act of defiance she slammed her door shut, hoping any spying SHIELD agents wouldn't take a peek. And if they did, so be it. She could care less.

…

…

…

**I'm cruel to my own character aren't I? Yikes. The poor girl thinks he actually cares about her! :( How sad. It isn't for the right reasons, Leslie!**

**Remember to review if you like or hate this! Any feedback is always loved.**


	10. Asgard At Last

_**Quick Note**_

**Finally time to wrap the story around to where we left off in chapter one! You were probably wondering when the hell that was going to happen, haha.**

**As always – reviews/criticism highly encouraged.**

**Happy reading!**

…

…

…

At first it was not so bad.

Leslie and Stark had no direct contact with one another but their subordinates played middle men amongst the drama. The merger was still underway. Stark Industries was absorbing most of Lyrhon Incorporated but Leslie figured that much was to be expected. She put up a fierce fight for full transference for all her employees so the merger would not produce layoffs. However, she not-so-strongly defended herself. It was almost depressing how easily she was letting her company go.

_I could never do you justice, daddy. I'm not like you. I'm not like mommy. I'm not like Darren. And I'm not like Tony Stark._ She had decided it was time for the figurehead act to come to an end. She was a great businesswoman, yes, but hardly a CEO. If it were not for the sudden emotional hole she found herself in she would probably fight to manage the marketing department. That was always her strongest suit.

At this point she would be lucky to end up as a janitor in her own lobby.

Amongst the sadness, her sudden affair with Loki began to dominate most of her time. Sometimes they conversed in deep conversations about life and moral values. Most of those led to fights that started seriously and ended as jokes. At other times they skipped the talking and just slept with each other. Loki found the "Midgardian bedding traditions" to be "most fascinating," but in truth Leslie had just taught him what foreplay was.

_Barbarians, all of them_, she had thought in regards to Asgardian love making.

She never meant for the affair to engulf her but her mind had gone off the tracks. Her father's death, Darren's as well, the stress of running the company alone, The Avengers initiative, the merger, and now Loki… it was all finally taking its toll on her. She had been indifferent for too long. After years of endurance her glass cage had finally shattered.

Slowly but surely she contemplated vanishing. Not death or suicide – just a temporary vacation. She wanted to live though she was not entirely sure what for. She figured she'd travel the world and find a new purpose somewhere. Bruce Banner had done it. Why couldn't she?

"Maybe I'll call him," she muttered aloud. "He might have some advice."

That call never happened.

Leslie had received an email from her secretary that destroyed any ounce of resolve she had left.

_Miss Leonards,_

_In celebration of the merger Stark Ind cordially invites Lyrhon Inc to attend a joint-benefit at The Gala Royale one week from today._

_Formal invitation is attached._

_Regards,_

_Quinn Dartly  
_

_P.S. – Haven't seen you in the office lately. Hope everything's alright._

"Damn you, Quinn!" Leslie groaned at her laptop and shut it forcibly. The thought of going to the party made her absolutely nauseous. In an emotionally panicked response she decided to go AWOL from all corporate duties for the rest of the week. There were dozens of voicemails, hundreds of missed calls, e-mails upon e-mails all begging her attention. Her world had been reduced to the size of her penthouse: population, two.

She itched for the outside world but feared the firestorm that awaited her. The joint-benefit was three days away when she surprised Loki with one way tickets to a resort town in Mexico. Her private jet had made the travel reclusive. The lack of familiar faces in Mexico was even better.

Now, Asgard… that was something else entirely. It took reclusion to the next level.

…

…

…

_I should move here_, thought Leslie to herself in jest. She knew that would never happen, and worse, things had to change fast.

Ending it with Loki was a topic she struggled with all week long. She had hoped to break the news to him in Mexico but she could – as she put it – never find the right time. There were plenty of opportunities, just none she was ready for.

_Separate myself from Loki, smooth things over with Tony, and get back to work._ That was her mental to-do list. It was terribly neglected in every way.

Her mind had been lost in recent memories as she recounted the events for the Warriors Three. Of course several details had been omitted but they had the general picture.

"He talks to you about anything?" Fandral was in disbelief. "The bastard cannot look the half of us in the eye let alone recite his life story!"

"I don't know his life story but I know enough to get it, I guess." Leslie shrugged and nibbled on some of the food at the table before her. _Feasting really is a thing here. This table's covered with stuff! Looks more like it's meant for thirty than three._

Fandral detected her discomfort and decided to change the subject. Still, his new choice could have been better. "This 'party' at The Gala Royale… must you attend?"

"Yeah, it's pretty much mandatory. I'm the leader of the company." She gave a faint, tired smile. "I think people would notice if I wasn't there."

"Quite a shame it is tomorrow!" Volstagg interjected. "If you must leave us so soon then we will have to celebrate tonight. A feast in the Great Hall is in order!"

"Wait, what?" Leslie blinked. "You're throwing _me _a party?"

"Of course, my dear!" boomed Fandral. "It is not every day we are graced by the presence of a warrior of Midgard. Thor has told us much about your gloriousness! We shall throw a feast tonight in celebration. We must inform Thor at once!"

…

…

…

Sif and Loki had an awkward walk over to the council's chambers. He knew what topic she was debating bringing up. Sif was not the kind of goddess to keep quiet when she wanted to speak up. In this case she knew there was a thin line that could easily be crossed. It was a matter that needed to be brought up delicately. No yelling or accusations – just queries.

"Your mortal friend, this… Leslie girl," Sif squinted a bit, "she looks terribly familiar."

"Does she now? I know not what you speak of." The God of Lies was at it again.

"Is that so?" Sif didn't buy it for one second. "Am I to believe her stunning resemblance to Lady Ejlonwe is mere coincidence?"

Loki should have known bringing the woman here would be trouble. Ejlonwe had been particularly close to Sif. In fact both she and Thor probably spent more time with Ejlonwe than he ever did. He wished he had not wasted so much time being bashful.

"Do you think the others will say anything to her in our absence?" There was no sense pretending when she figured him out.

"I believe it shan't be an issue. None of the Warriors Three were deeply acquainted with Ejlonwe. I have confidence that they will not notice a thing."

"Good." He breathed a sigh of relief. "I fear it is best that way."

"I take it she does not know it herself, then?" Sif frowned. She was afraid of that.

Loki hesitated to answer for a minute. "… no, she does not."

_I hope you are not clinging to her because of what I think you are_, thought Sif to herself sadly. There was no use accusing Loki of anything now. She would rather have him calm for his hearing. As soon as she escorted him into the council's chambers she instantly departed to find Thor. _Your brother is in danger, Thor_, she thought on her run there. _He is his own worst enemy, and I fear he shall forever be._

…

…

…

"Thor!" exclaimed Leslie as she entered another luxurious room with Fandral tailing behind her. "Hey!" She waved her arms about merrily.

"Leslie?" Thor had been discussing something quietly with a couple guards but turned to greet the Earthling with a hefty smile. "I am quite surprised to see you here!"

"I'm just as surprised as you are, believe me. It was kind of last minute." The two embraced happily and made light small talk for a few moments while Fandral waited patiently.

"It is in our thinking," he began once the two had finally quieted down, "that we shall have a feast for Leslie to celebrate her presence. She is with us for but one night after all."

"A splendid idea! I shall see to it that Asgard shows you all its glory in honor and good fun," claimed Thor with a playful nudge at Leslie's shoulder.

"You guys are really too much. Really, you don't have to trouble yourselves over me!"

"Nonsense! Had I known you were here myself I would have organized it on my own accord. Bask in the realm of Asgard for the short time you are amongst us, my friend. I hope you find it to your liking."

"Trust me, I'm already impressed." Leslie laughed with both of the great warriors just as Sif had found them and entered the room. Her serious expression shattered the mood instantly.

"Thor, a moment of your time if you will?" Her voice was stern and cold. Whatever it was, Thor figured he ought to oblige at once.

"Excuse me, please."

"Of course! I'll see you later." Leslie waved as the god and goddess exited the room in a hurry. "Gosh, I hope everything's okay."

…

…

…

Thor and Sif found a quiet and secluded corner of the palace to hold their discussion in, free of guards or any wandering beings.

"She came with Loki, Thor." Sif tried to keep her distress at bay but her words still quivered. "You know as well as I that she looks exactly like—"

"Ejlonwe, I know." Thor shook his head. "Do you fear he binds himself to her for this alone?"

"I shall not claim to be an expert on their relationship having just met the mortal myself, but… your brother seems more subdued. He is gentler, more reasonable…"

"Just as he used to be." Thor began to understand Sif's level of concern. "Perhaps you are right. I shall talk to him myself when the time is right and see what I can do. There may be a chance he will listen to me in his new found state… though I shan't put much faith in that either."

Sif swallowed hard before asking. "And if he rebels?"

Thor held up Mjolnir with a grim expression. "If he becomes a threat than he must be quelled as such."

…

…

…

"You got permission to take me into the city?" Leslie shrieked with joy and hugged Loki tightly. "I'm so excited! I can't wait!"

Loki had passed his hearing with flying colors much to the surprise of both himself and the council. As something of a small reward he requested permission to go about the city with Leslie. The council conceded on two conditions; one, they must be accompanied by at least one escort, and two, they must be back at the palace by nightfall.

"I thought you might like to gather some souvenirs in the markets."

"We're going shopping?" Leslie giggled contently at her one _very _feminine weakness. "This is too perfect. What are we waiting for?"

For the first time in a while Leslie finally felt alive again. For just one day she would forget about everything back at Earth; no more business, no more Stark, no more SHIELD, no more _anything_. Today was about life in Asgard and nothing was going to spoil that for her.

Thor and Sif entered the room to meet Loki and Leslie.

"The council told us of your day plans," announced Thor with a grin. "Please - allow us to be your escorts!"

Loki grimaced instantly. "I was rather hoping to _enjoy _today."

"Oh, c'mon!" Leslie sparkled with delight. "I think it would be a blast if we all went together! We need escorts anyway. Why not them?"

Thor and Sif smiled and waved happily as they masked their deep concerns.

"If you truly prefer them then _fine_, let's just get on with it."

Loki rolled his eyes as everyone else laughed. The foursome departed to the markets of Asgard all content on the surface but so varied deep within. Thor feared for Leslie's well being and Loki's heart. Sif braced herself for what she thought was impending battle. Leslie immersed herself in the moment and wiped her mind clear of all things Midgard. Loki day dreamt fondly of the goddess he wished she was.

Their peaceful façade could only last so long.


	11. Markets, Feasts and Fears

_**Quick Note**_

**I feel a bit silly with this chapter's contents. I admit 90% of my Thor knowledge comes from the movies – which don't touch on all that much, I might add – so I am totally winging it with my Asgardian culture stuff here.**

**So sorry if I'm offending any diehard comic fans! :(**

…

…

…

Leslie felt like she had fallen into the living pages of a storybook. The best Earth-apt description of Asgard she could come up with was medieval England streets meet the golden glimmer of Ancient Egypt meets the magical imagination of Harry Potter.

"This is too surreal!" The mere mortal was captivated by everything around her. The color palate, the fashion, the merchandise – nothing was ever dull or subtle in Asgard.

Her eyes sparkled in wonder as she took it all in. Lost in her own splendor, she had not even noticed how most of the citizens were staring at her oddly. A slender girl in a wimpy little sundress prancing about like it was a holiday was bound to draw attention.

"Do you like it here, Leslie?" mused Thor in his booming voice.

"I _love _it!" The brunette squeaked in delight and found herself attracted to one of the many vendor stands that lined the street.

The two men at the stand were an armor craftsman and a tailor. Some of their combined efforts were on display and were absolutely gorgeous. Gold plates and rich colored clothes made for impressive armor.

"Excuse me," she piped up to the men. "Do you craft ladies ware per chance?"

"_You're _a warrior?" scoffed the tailor in disbelief.

"One of the finest warriors in all of Midgard," interjected Thor as he came up next to her. The tailor and the craftsman instantly dropped the attitude.

"How can we please you, m'lady?" they cried in unison.

Loki came to flank Leslie on her unoccupied side and gave a disturbing grin to the two workers. "I wish to – with the fine lady's permission of course – put in a gift order for her armor."

"Oh Loki, you don't have to!" Leslie blushed at the gesture.

He gave her a knowing smile. "Actually, I do. I doubt you're carrying Asgardian coins."

"Oh, right… money… duh." Leslie slapped her forehead in embarrassment. She was so used to her wealth and presence in New York that wanting something always translated into getting it. Her brain had become too spoiled and skipped the assumption of cost.

"Let me have the honor of surprising you with this. Consider it a thank you for that Italian suit from the benefit. I shan't take no for an answer."

"Oh alright, why not." Leslie gave him a quick peck on the cheek. "I'll trust your keen eye for design."

With Loki blushing Leslie bounced off to join Sif a little further down the street. She had been enjoying the sounds of a band with a small smile on her face until the mortal popped up out of nowhere. The goddess hardly ever let her guard down and was embarrassed to have gasped in surprise.

"Sorry if I snuck up on you, Sif." Leslie offered an apologetic smile. "Enjoying the music?"

"Yes, it's quite merry. I am fond of music at feasts that celebrate our great triumphs at war. Which reminds me," a confident look grazed the goddess's face, "we were supposed to discuss techniques were we not?"

"Does that have to happen right this minute?" Leslie was tapping her foot to the sound of the tunes. It sounded like a perfect blend of fiddles, drums and brass. "This music's lovely! How about we dance?"

"Dance?" Sif gave the mortal a peculiar look.

Before she knew it Leslie was pulling her into the center of the street while skipping in rhythm with the music. At first the goddess was apprehensive but her hesitance melted away fast. The two women spun about with speed – skipping, turning and clapping in mirrored unison. Within seconds several others came to join them in a circular pattern. Leslie and Sif soon found themselves at the heart of a riveting group number.

"Would you look at that," mused Thor from a distance. Loki was still going through fabrics and metals for Leslie's getup when his gaze met what Thor was talking about. "She's brought more life into these streets than I could have thought possible."

Loki rolled his eyes with a smile. "Yes, she's quite a pip like that." He completed the order with the craftsman and tailor. He moved to stand beside his adoptive brother. "I admit she even had me dancing in Midgard."

"You? _Dancing_?" Thor burst into tremendous laughter. Loki folded his arms and scowled, instantly regretting having a moment of brotherly honesty with the oaf. "Brother, that is tremendous! What a sight it must have been. I wish to have witnessed that myself."

"I bet," scoffed Loki. "What a pity for me to have been deprived of your audience."

Thor was oblivious to the sarcasm. "Let us make up for this now!"

Just as Leslie had jerked Sif into the scene with swiftness, Thor was now dragging his younger brother into the circle of action. The God of Thunder was quickly in sync with everyone else, leaping, spinning and clapping as Loki stared in horror.

"Never!" he shouted while trying to escape the crowd.

"NOT SO FAST!" exclaimed Leslie as she swung around and pulled him in again.

He was in the center now with her and in no position to escape. The music increased in intensity and all the people responded as such. The dance became more complex, swifter, and harder to keep up with. Leslie missed a step or two but laughed through it all with a smile. The sound of her laughter made the God of Mischief melt a little inside. Caving in to the moment he finally began dancing with everyone else. He was much more skilled at the Asgardian form than he pathetic spazzing about from the sleepover.

Everyone increased the clapping as the song was drawing towards its end. Loki picked Leslie up and spun her around at the final note, holding her up in the air for a moment while everyone else stopped. The crowd broke into cheers and jumping, praising Leslie for starting the fun. The bright sunlight shone from behind Leslie as Loki held her up. It gave her almost a goddess-like glow. He smiled in delight as he brought her down to the ground, refusing to fully let her go.

"That was amazing," she let out in a breathless chirp. "Does that happen often here?"

"Hardly if ever, actually. That was more so because of _you_." He placed a quick and sweet kiss on her lips.

Thor and Sif gave concerned looks at one another. It was a silent confirmation of what they had feared. There was definitely some form of twisted affection taking place between them.

Leslie blushed and began to walk further down the street while holding hands with Loki. She admired all the fine pottery and glasswork stands they were passing but came to a screeching halt in front of a jewelry kiosk. The foursome traversed over to the table and examined all the items with approval.

"These are all superb quality – some of the rarest gems in all of Asgard," remarked Thor.

The elderly shopkeeper gave a gracious nod. "Thank you, Thor. I take great pride in what I offer." She took notice of Leslie's bright eyes. "Would the strange young woman like to try something on?"

"Oh, me?" Leslie glanced up at the shopkeeper and beamed with joy. "Please!"

"Let me see." The elderly woman browsed around her vast selection carefully before producing a gorgeous necklace. The platinum chain bore a string of gems in gradual sizes, alternating between a deep crimson red and vivid indigo. Leslie figured the Earth equivalent would cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. Gems of that enormous size were almost unheard of in her world. "I believe this shall suit you fine."

Leslie held her hair up and let the shopkeeper fasten it around her neck. She spun around at once to face her three companions.

"Well, how does it look?"

All three of them were smiling with approval.

"You _must _have this," insisted Loki as he dropped a sizeable amount of coins in the shopkeeper's collection bag.

"Jeez, I hope I'm not running you broke!" Leslie suddenly realized how expensive her purchases today had probably been.

Thor burst out laughing again. "Hardly a matter of consequence, Leslie. Do not forget who we are."

Leslie blushed in embarrassment and nodded. _Oh duh, they're like the royal family of Asgard. Awkward relations or not, I doubt Loki's wallet is hurting._

With thanks to the shopkeeper the squad began to walk back down towards the palace again. Loki and Leslie were hand-in-hand up ahead. Thor and Sif purposely trailed far behind enough to still see them clearly but maintain a hushed conversation in privacy.

"They do seem awfully well acquainted," admitted Sif with dismay.

"Yes, and I know Leslie well. She definitely cares for him in the purest way. I do not doubt her intentions. She simply wishes to make my brother happy."

"What of your brother's intentions?"

"Those are harder to discern," confessed an unhappy Thor. "I believe he has some affection for the mortal but his motives are unclear. If he sees Ejlonwe in her he may be trying to capture a second chance at the love he never had."

Sif frowned. The thought of Leslie being used actually upset her. She was growing fond of the silly mortal. "I see. …So he may cast her aside if he realizes there is no connection between her and Ejlonwe?"

"I fear he may outright abandon her." Thor took in the strength of his next words. "Perhaps it may only be a matter of time… what those on Midgard call a ticking time-bomb. It is a device that inevitably explodes, devastating everything around it."

Both Thor and Sif had the same disturbing mental image of Leslie being blown up in a hellish fire. They grimaced but quickly wiped their faces clean of emotion in an effort to keep their discussion low key.

"Shall you talk to him tonight then?" asked Sif.

"Yes I believe I shall. May I request that you talk to Leslie? She should not be left in the dark with this situation much longer. I fear the longer it continues, the more pain she is bound to encounter."

"Yes, of course. I shall pull her aside this evening. There shall be enough of a crowd at the feast for a couple of missing ladies to go unnoticed."

With a vague plan in place, Thor and Sif confirmed the notion of confronting the deranged couple that evening. They could only hope it would not leave a mass of destruction in its wake.

…

…

…

As soon as they returned to the palace Leslie retired to her temporary room. She wanted to catch some rest before the festivities that evening and fell asleep easily on the plush bed. It was quite some time later when a familiar knock at the door woke her gently.

"Come in, Loki," she announced as she rose out of bed.

Loki opened the door and walked in to present Leslie with her finished armor. It was a gorgeous ensemble she could hardly stop staring at. The chest plates, arm cuffs, shoulder braces and waist piece were intricately designed gold, filled with swirling patterns that reminded her oceans. It was bound together by a mix of black and purple leather and cloth, forming long sleeves and a bottom that would extend like a short skirt past her waistline. The accompanying headpiece was a swirling golden tiara adorned with the same red and indigo gems from the necklace she was still wearing. The purple cape and black boots completed the outfit.

"It's done," Loki announced to the drooling Leslie. "I shall assume you like it."

"I can't believe it - it's amazing!" The brunette jumped out of bed and ran over to Loki. "Thank you so much, you designed it so beautifully!"

"I'm glad it pleases you." Loki smiled and handed the outfit over to the giddy girl. "It would please me greatly in return if you were to wear it tonight."

"You don't have to ask _me_ twice." Leslie hugged the bundle of metal and leather. "I'd be honored to."

"Good, because you've managed to sleep most of the night away and the feast is beginning right about _now_ so I would get changing if I were you."

"You're kidding me! Oh gosh, alright. Go ahead without me, I'll meet you down there."

"You sure?"

"Yeah, positive. Get moving, you don't need to be late too!"

Laughing and shaking his head, Loki moved to exit the room and left Leslie to change in peace. It took here a decent amount of time to get the entire outfit on. Once all was said and done she could not get over the image that stared back at her in the mirror. She looked like she was a goddess of Asgard. It was almost scary.

She took a deep breath and tried to force off any thoughts that had to do with tomorrow. _Tonight is about being here and enjoying myself_, she thought with conviction. _Nothing is going to change that._

Leaving her room, she sprinted through the halls until she met the faint tunes of drifting music. The same energetic music from the markets now resonated throughout the Great Hall in the palace. Gods, goddesses and great warriors of all sorts filled the room with an intoxicating chemistry. Everyone took turns trading their best war stories and embarrassing tales, trying their best to one-up one another. Every so often a round of thunderous laughter would break out from some pocket of conversation.

Leslie spent a good amount of time noshing on small edibles and chatting it up with Sif when a voice spoke up to catch her attention.

"Tell us a tale from Midgard, mortal!" cried one of the great warriors.

Leslie was leaning against a long table covered in delectable cuisine that seemed quite foreign to her. Clad in her brand new armor, she looked much more ferocious and forceful than she was in her normal state. She gave a nervous laugh and quirked her brow unsurely at the crowd.

"I don't know if I can compete with all of you," she confessed.

"Such lies you spread," joked Thor with a mug of mead in his hand. It was the alcoholic beverage of choice in Asgard. "You are one of the finest warriors I have ever seen!"

"Calm down Beowulf," joked Leslie as she climbed up to stand on one of the seats. This put her at a good height advantage over most of the behemoth crowd.

"Beowulf?" muttered Thor to himself. "What is a Beowulf?"

"Do you really want to hear a story?" asked Leslie to the crowd.

A resounding chorus of yeses and cheers came flying at her. _Guess I have my answer_, she thought with a laugh.

Knowing ahead of time she would need to simplify a lot of odds and ends in her tales for the sake of an Asgardian audience, she decided to tell a modified version of when she took down Jeremy Wrustleman.

"In my world my father ruled a powerful kingdom. We were very well liked by our subjects and took pride in our way of life. There was a man named Jeremy who was one of the King's most trusted advisors. They had led together for many years but over time Jeremy's jealousy of the King grew great. One day he decided he couldn't take it anymore. He thought he would make a better king than my father – an absolute lie if you ask me. One of Jeremy's evil warriors killed the King and tried to take over his kingdom but I would not stand for it. I took control of the kingdom and ruled as Queen in his place."

The Asgardian audience marveled at her story, making noises of shock and wonder at her leadership. Their mental image was hardly a picture of reality but Leslie figured they could do without the cultural particulars.

"In my status as Queen, Jeremy saw to eliminate me as well." She waved her arm dramatically, flaring out the end of her purple cape with gust. "In his attempts to kill me he managed to make me stronger than I ever was before!"

"WHAT A FOOL!" cried one drunken warrior from the back of the crowd.

Leslie jumped up on the table and animated her words with gestures. "I took to the battlefield and whipped him back and forth! Chased him about and tossed him into buildings until he finally surrendered! He swore that he would one day return to kill me but I made sure that this day would never come." Smirking, she gloated, "I imprisoned him within so dark a cell that he shall consider himself lucky should he ever see the light of day again."

Everyone gave a booming round of applause as Leslie took a bow.

"I pity the fool that should ever cross your path in war!" cried out another drunken warrior.

Another demanded, "Give us a show!"

"Yes, show them what you can do!" added Sif. She had only seen a brief preview that morning when Leslie did her short transformation. Even she longed for a better look at the mortal's powers.

"Okay, _okay_, but only for a moment!"

Leslie closed her eyes and tapped into her Axiom as limitedly as she could. Her eyes and hair only faded slightly. She knew she would not be able to do anything too dazzling in such a limited state but she did not want to risk making a huge mess.

With a flick of the wrist she produced a large rod of solid electricity. It sparked in unruly protest to its rigid form. Flicking her other wrist, she conjured another matching rod and began to whip them about the room. A less intoxicated warrior in the crowd drew his sword in an attempt to match Leslie. They engaged in a sparring match that drew the attention of everyone in the room.

Leslie made sure to keep the warrior preoccupied with the one rod and, once she was sure he would not react in time, tossed the other rod up into the air. It spliced the chain of the chandelier above and sent it hurling down to crush the Asgardian below. It struck him with force and knocked him into the ground. Leslie reached up and caught the airborne rod, pointing the ends of both at the warrior in victory.

"I believe I win!" she boasted as the poor man stumbled to his feet.

The room erupted into more cheers and praise. The Earthling let herself return to normal, the electric rods dissipating into thin air and her color restoring to its true state.

After a couple hours of eating, drinking and storytelling Leslie had completely fallen in love with life at Asgard. She was in the middle of an intense name-calling competition with an inebriated warrior when Sif tugged on her sleeve. The mortal glanced over her shoulder.

"I'm winning this!" she claimed with pride.

"I'm afraid I shall have to ask you to concede the battle," returned Sif. "I would like to go on a brief walk about the palace with you if you wouldn't mind?"

Leslie turned back to the warrior and glared. "You win this one by _default_, understand?"

The warrior could care less about the circumstances and merely fist pumped in celebration of his victory. Leslie and Sif exited the room without attracting too much attention. Once Thor had observed their leave he moved about the room until he found Loki. The God of Mischief looked bored out of his mind in a discussion with another god. Despite how he felt about his adoptive brother, the repenting villain gladly came to Thor when he was called, desperate for an exit from the conversation.

"Do you mind if we take a walk about the palace, brother?" asked Thor hopefully.

"I suppose it wouldn't hurt," responded Loki without much enthusiasm. He was more desperate to get out of the Great Hall than anything else. If a stroll with the God of Thunder was the price he had to pay then so be it.

Had he known what he was about to get himself into perhaps he would not have agreed at all.

…

…

…

**Dun dun dun! Confessions are about to be made! Truths exposed! Lessons learned! **

**Meanwhile SHIELD's been having a field day with how Loki and Leslie vanished off the map. Sorry Fury but even your forces can't creep in Asgard.**

**Remember to review, please! It only takes a moment! Thank you for taking the time to read this silly story of mine. :)  
**


	12. Confessions In The Night

_**Quick Note**_

**Hello and thank you to the new faves/alerts! I'm so thrilled people like this. It's what encourages me to keep going. :) Writing is always more fun with an audience. Always remember to review & enjoy!**

…

…

…

Thinking it would be best to have some fresh air Sif had taken Leslie out to one of the courtyard gardens. The two women stopped at the edge of a lake and stared at the waters silently. It was pitch black outside but lights from the palace gave the courtyard a golden glow. It fit the mood all too ill.

"You're scaring me." Leslie's voice was shaking with worry. "What's wrong?"

"It may be nothing." Sif kept her eyes fixated on the lake. The last thing she wanted to see was Leslie's face during this conversation. "Then again, it may be something. Thor and I thought it best to share our concerns with you now. You deserve a warning."

"A warning?" Leslie's heart skipped a beat. "My world – is it in danger again?"

_Not your realm, but your own little world is a different story_. Sif sighed in defeat. There was no point beating around the bush. "It's Loki… and you. Whatever is happening between you two may not be for the best."

Leslie narrowed her eyes in confusion. Sif's words were offensive.

"I do not doubt your side in all of this. Thor has reassured me of your character. You do not wish to trick or deceive, and you have Loki's best interests in your heart. I am grateful that someone out there can feel for him in this way. Especially given recent times."

"Of course I care about him." Leslie was not ready to admit that she loved the god out loud. Not yet, anyhow. Though she had made no secret of her affections just the same. "He's a hard nut to crack but I know behind that rough exterior is this sweet, delicious center that deserves to be free. How is that so bad?"

"It may not be true in the way _you_ see it." Sif braced herself for what her confession would bring. "Once upon a time, yes, he was a much more pleasant creature. He was always one for pranks but never possessed evil in his heart the way he does now. In those cherished innocent days another goddess lived amongst us in Asgard. Her name was Ejlonwe…"

…

…

…

Thor and Loki had meandered out onto one of the terraces. The two stared at the picturesque realm of Asgard at night. Loki had been away for so long that he almost forgot this was what it really looked like. After a moment in light consideration he decided that he preferred the skyline of New York City instead.

"In my conversations with Heimdall I have learned you are quite enjoying your time on Earth. This pleases me greatly, brother." Thor wanted to ease into the icky topic at hand.

"Midgard is a stupid realm," scoffed Loki.

Thor frowned. "Does anywhere please you more?"

Loki had to think for a moment. "No, I suppose not. Perhaps it deserves a _little_ more credit."

"Your fondness of Leslie Leonards is quite the shocker." Thor gave a knowing grin and wiggled his eyebrows a bit. "The women in that realm truly are something else, are they not?"

Loki rolled his eyes. This was hardly the topic he wanted to talk about with his so-called brother. "They are of no consequence to me. Leslie is merely an exception. The rest of them are all sniveling wenches."

Thor had to invest a moment in calming down. He would have snapped at the implication that Jane Foster was a 'sniveling wench' but he would be provoking Loki enough for one night with what was to come.

"She is not an exception simply because of her appearance, is she? I see much of Ejlonwe in her eyes."

_It's more than her eyes you bumbling moron_, thought Loki. _Everything about her is a beautiful reminder._

"Perhaps there is something more to be discovered." Loki's next words confirmed Thor's worst fears. "What if Ejlonwe lives on in this woman? She may be a reincarnation. Or perhaps she is inhabited by her spirit – or has some connection to it from the realms beyond. Or _maybe—_"

"Or _maybe_ you are a fool." Thor's words cut through him like a knife. "I can assure you brother, I have gotten to know Leslie well. She was born and raised in Midgard all her life. Until my joining The Avengers she had never known of Asgard or any other realms beyond her own. She is a human who, under what I've come to learn were _terrible _circumstances, came to acquire powers that make her stand out amongst the rest. She_ is_ a mortal. She is her _own_ being. And she is most definitely _not _Ejlonwe."

…

…

…

"So it's all a lie?" Leslie was trying her best to fight off hysterics. "I look like this Ejlonwe girl and that's all there is to it?"

"That may not be true but—"

"If he doesn't care…" The fragile mortal was on the verge of tears. "Sif, if he _doesn't_ care about me… what happens when he finds out I'm not her?"

Sif looked grimly at the ground. "He will most likely abandon you. Or worse… he may kill you in a fit of anger, feeling like you somehow tricked him by just being yourself."

Leslie froze in fear. _Kill me? No… no he couldn't!_ Had she truly fallen in love with someone who did not love her back? And worse, could kill her because of this? _This can't be!_

"I… I…" Leslie fell to her knees and let the tears of fear and rage flow. "No! No, _no, NO_!" In blind emotion, she felt herself get up and suddenly start running. She had no idea where she was off to. She could hardly see through her warm and wet eyes. Still, anywhere seemed better than here.

"Leslie! Leslie, wait! … Damn it!" Sif decided to run and find Thor instead of chasing after the girl. He was a better friend of the mortal's and would probably be more equipped for calming her down. Damage control was one thing Sif had no ability to handle right now.

…

…

…

"I shall hold out hope, Thor!" shouted Loki in a fit of rage. "For once I have found something to believe in! Something that is worth the investment for a change!"

"It is another poisonous dream, brother! Don't you see? Your fight for the throne, your conquest of Midgard, your perusing Ejlonwe after death… these are all pointless endeavors. You set yourself up for heartbreak and devastation! You are your own worst enemy, a victim to your blind ambitions!"

"Then I shall be my own undoing if that's what it takes to _feel _something again!"

Before another word could be said, Sif burst into the scene. She ran over to the quarreling brothers with a look of panic in her eyes.

"Thor, she's run off!"

"Leslie's _gone_?" both Thor and Loki remarked in unison.

"What did you tell her?" added the God of Mischief aggressively. "Don't tell me she knows!"

"We thought it right to warn her, brother. Your intentions are indeed ill. When you come to realize she is not Ejlonwe, and you _shall_, what then?"

Loki glared both Thor and Sif for a moment before answering.

"Then I suppose I have just wasted my time. Wouldn't be the first time."

An upset Sif shook her head in disapproval. _That poor girl… he doesn't love her at all._

"You are to stay away from her," ordered Thor to his younger brother before taking flight to find Leslie.

"_What_…?" Loki sneered at the Goddess of War. Her face was full of judgment.

"Perhaps it is your greatest flaw of all, that you shall never know what you have until it is gone." Sif was full of anger. It seeped into her tone of voice. "Asgard is your home, Thor is your brother, and Leslie is _too good_ for you but loves you anyway. Instead of turning your nose up at all that's before you, try embracing it for once."

With that, she turned and exited the terrace, leaving Loki alone in the dark of night.

…

…

…

The palace was too big for its own good. Leslie had gotten lost two minutes into her mad dash into nowhere. She had turned down so many halls that backtracking to the courtyard was near impossible. _I need to be alone, anyway_, she thought with a sniffle. _Who cares if I'm lost? That makes it easier._

She had let her run slow to a brisk walk about the grounds. Surveying her surroundings, she thought it best to find a room to vanish into. It would be trouble if someone saw her. Even the sight of a stranger would reduce her to tears. She had just managed to stop crying and needed space.

A small door with some ancient Asgardian scrawl on it seemed inviting enough. Not sure of the contents, she pushed it open and found herself inside a dimly lit cellar. It was damp and cold, far different than the seasonably warm air of an Asgardian night.

"Hello?" she called out in a croaky voice. She was relieved to be met with no answer.

The brunette wandered around aisles of storage material. Random bits of armor, unfinished furniture, some random drapes… it was an oddly out of place room.

_What a weird place_. The sight of a flickering light far off in the back corner of the cellar had soon caught her eye. _Hmm… I wonder what's back there?_

Leslie died the old tears that were resting on her face. She had found her secluded spot and decided to focus on snooping about the creepy cellar. At least some distraction could help her stop crying.

When she was but a few yards away from the back corner, the floor suddenly gave out from underneath her. Leslie screamed as she plunged into a dark abyss. She was tumbling through pitch black air for a solid ten seconds before she smacked the ground.

_Oh my god, that hurt…_ She flipped over on her back and tried to catch her breath. _Did I seriously just fall through a floor? _Opening her eyes, she discovered herself to be in a very different looking room. She got to her feet, dusted herself off, and gaped at what was around her. _What is this place?_

Leslie had managed to find the old Magics Room, the practice grounds of Loki and his Sorcery Master back when he was but a small boy. It was lit in an eerie blue glowing light. Perhaps there was a way to make it brighter but the mortal didn't have a clue how.

"The hell…?" She spun around to see a large collection of books and bags on a shelving unit. Grabbing one of the texts, she flipped through the dusty pages to discover that it was a spell book. It was handwritten in gorgeous calligraphy.

_That's right… magic's a thing here_. In painful curiosity she flipped through several more books in hopes of discovering a love spell. It took a lot of unsuccessful attempts to realize she would not use one even if she did find it. _Who am I kidding? I'm not dumb enough to trick myself like that._

She decided to peruse just one more book before looking for an exit. It was much thicker than the rest with pages as light as paper but with the look of pure gold. One particular heading caught her eye.

"Summoning The Goddess…?" Leslie read on to discover that there was a way, albeit a very risky one, to transform non-divine begins into gods or goddesses. This particular section was about female transformation.

Sparked with sudden inspiration, she tore the notes from the book and stuffed them in a crevasse of her armor. She also grabbed little baggies of various raw materials off the storage shelf, tucking them away elsewhere.

_That'll do for now_.

She searched around for a few minutes until she found an exit and, in a strange twist of luck, ended up in the hall that boasted her bedroom two doors down. She walked to the edge of the hallway and looked out of the open archway to the nighttime sky. A streak of movement caught her eye.

_Is that a comet? _The movement seemed to change directly and suddenly come hurtling towards her. _Oh my god, it's Thor!_

The God of Thunder came bounding through the archway and landed across from Leslie. The look of concern on his face pained her deeply.

"I am sorry for everything you have endured," he began. "I believe it is for the best if you return to Midgard. Surely your people need you there."

Leslie gave a slow, depressing nod. "Yeah, I really need to get back there."

"Then this is goodbye for now, Leslie. I hope next time we meet it will be under better circumstances." Thor gave her a quick hug and pat on the back before a familiar glow engulfed her.

"Goodbye, Thor."

Leslie suddenly vanished just the way she came. Flying through the wormhole this time was more sorrowful than magical. Within seconds she was back on Earth. The wormhole spit her out into the heart of Central Park.

She made her way towards the streets and hailed the first cab she could find. Once back at her penthouse she dumped the notes and baggies onto her kitchen table and left to change out of her Asgardian armor.

Before she got unchanged, she took a good look at herself in her bedroom mirror. Balling her hands into fists, she glared down her reflection and gave a smirk.

_I could make a fierce goddess if I wanted to_, _right?_

…

…

…

**Now before you flip out over the concept at the end of this chapter, let me throw in the 10% of my Thor knowledge from the comicverse!**

**In one of the _Ultimates _storylines Jane Foster temporarily becomes a goddess by the name of Thordis (LOL) and even wields Mjolnir! I was inspired to play around with that general concept in my own work. It becomes the crux of the second half of this fic so I hope you're down with it!**

… **oh, and fun fact, Thordis falls in love with and marries Odin. Don't think I'm adopting _that _concept. No offense, Anthony Hopkins.**

**Thanks for reading! Please take the time to review. :)**


	13. Rekindling The Fire

Leslie was finally ready to start getting her life on track. A hot shower, a good night's sleep and getting back into the office all served to straighten things out. The brunette's heels clicked down the halls of Lyrhon Inc.'s tower. Many of her employees paused to greet her and make for small talk.

"Where've you been, girl?" asked the always-sassy Camilla from the finance department. "We were starting to think you died or something."

"I'm not dead yet," joked Leslie. "I just came down with a fierce case of pneumonia." It was a believable lie she had chosen to stick with.

"Oh my goodness!" Camilla surveyed her boss's appearance. "Well, you're lookin' fine now, girl! Glad to have you back in town."

Leslie smiled warmly. "Thanks, Cam. It's great to be back."

That much wasn't a lie. The CEO felt more at home in her company now than ever before. She began wishing that she pushed for more control in the merger. Perhaps a call to Stark was in order.

_Stark… oh boy._ She suddenly remembered the last time they had talked. It was a violet conversation. Seeing him tonight at the joint-benefit was going to be absolutely riveting. _Maybe I'll put a hold on that call for now._

Leslie made her way to her secretary Quinn's office and gathered all she had missed for days. It seemed Stark had stepped in and taken care of a lot of work. What was left could easily be done by dinnertime if she worked briskly.

"He was in and out of here all week," informed Quinn. She and Leslie were friends in college prior to their professional relationship. Their conversations often traversed into the informal and personal. "Pretty sure he's worried sick about you."

"Worried about me, or worried about the company? Big difference here."

"Definitely about you." Quinn frowned as she recalled the memories. "He asked me often if I ever talked to you, but you answered my calls and emails just as much as you did anyone else's. He kept hoping you'd come back. Yesterday was the worst though by far."

"Yesterday?" Leslie remembered how she had suddenly vanished in Mexico yesterday morning. The rest of the day was spent in Asgard. SHIELD would have lost their track on her and probably informed Stark of this. She felt awful for worrying him so much.

"He was almost in tears shouting, 'I can't find her!' and pacing around like a madman. Pretty sure he had a security detail out looking for you."

_SHIELD... right. I'll have to answer to them later._ "I'll see him tonight and explain things. Hopefully he'll be willing to hear me out."

"What happened with you, anyway?"

Leslie was about to start formulating some lie of a story when Quinn's desk phone rang.

"You have to get that!" ordered Leslie as she made a sprint for her office.

"Hey! You're telling me later, then!" Quinn huffed and picked up the phone. "Lyrhon Incorporated, this is Quinn Dartly speaking."

Leslie made it to her office and shut the door, leaning against it for a moment in relief. When she turned around she was surprised by a familiar man sitting on her desk.

_Shit. _She gulped. "I'm in trouble aren't I?"

Clint Barton sat in full Hawkeye uniform, arms crossed with a scowl on his face. Fury would only send him if he were truly pissed.

"More than you know, girlfriend. Care to explain yourself?" He took an arrow out of his quiver and began to polish it arbitrarily. It was a subtle reminder to Leslie not to even attempt lying.

"I was in Asgard. You can cross-check my alibi with Thor."

"Get out, _really_?" Clint dropped the severe face and looked curious. "What's it like there?"

"If I tell you will you clear my file with SHIELD?" She batted her eyelashes in a comical persuasive move. She always prodded Natasha to go out with Clint, something he was well aware of. This was just for jokes.

"Nice try, dollface." Clint hopped down off the desk and met Leslie in the middle of the room. "If it were up to me I'd clear you up but Fury's got his own agenda for you."

"Sweet. Bring it on." Leslie grimaced. "He's not planning to surprise me at the benefit tonight, is he? Last time wasn't so fun. I'd prefer to keep the air clear this evening."

Clint shrugged. "Knowing him he'll probably catch you beforehand. We only crashed the party last time because we saw Loki on the _fucking red carpet_. Thanks for the heads up."

The brunette turned pale and stared at her feet. "That won't be a problem anymore. Tell Fury he can throw a party. Loki's back at Asgard these days."

"He finished his rehab with you?" Clint slid his arrow back into the quiver.

"Honestly, all he had to do was a handful of good deeds. He met that goal a couple weeks ago." She folded her arms and tried not to get too emotional. "He made sure to get some serious damage in before all was said and done."

The serious demeanor in Hawkeye returned. "What did he do to you? I'm still itching to put an arrow through his eye socket. Feel free to add to my list of reasons."

Leslie stared up at Clint with depressed eyes. "He broke my heart."

"_What?_"

Clint's surprise was enough proof that he had not been part of Leslie's security detail. The amount of time she and Loki spent in bedrooms and showers should have tipped off SHIELD to the affair. An agent like Clint was probably elsewhere with Natasha on missions of higher importance.

"Girl, tell me you didn't… you know…" he cringed at the thought, "… _do _him, did you?"

Leslie turned red and covered her face with her hands in shame. "Too many times to count. I have no idea what's wrong with me."

Clint's eyes nearly bulged out of his head. "That's the most fucked up thing I've heard all day. Was it some kind of mind control?"

"That's what makes this even worse. It was one-hundred percent consent."

"_WHY?_"

Leslie was desperate. "I seriously thought he had the potential to change and I just—"

"Les," Clint cut her off and put a hand on her shoulder in comfort. "Not everyone can change. There are people out there that'll always be wicked. That's why there are people like us too. We stop them when they're beyond help."

The CEO let out a defeated sigh. "I guess _he_ was beyond help."

"Uh, _way_ beyond. You _were _there for that crap before, right?" Clint was having a hard time understanding his fellow Avenger's rationale. "I distinctly remember you throwing one of Stark's cars at Loki."

Leslie mused at the memory. The thought of punching the Asgardian made her incredibly happy. If she ever saw him again, and she hoped to hell she didn't, she would have to make sure he got to taste her wrath one more time.

"It was some crazy fling that's behind me now."

Clint smiled at the stressed out woman. "In my opinion, that's all that matters."

Leslie smiled back. "Thanks, man. Maybe after this merger's done Fury could see past his rage to make me an agent or something."

"Getting out of the family business?"

"I don't do it justice. Stark can worry about this crap. I'd probably do more for the world as a SHIELD agent." She shrugged passively. "I have enough money to my name to still be a philanthropist. Go on a mission here, donate to a cause over there… I can work with that."

"I'll put in a good word for you. Put me as a reference on your application."

The two shared a good laugh at the joke.

"Thanks for the offer. Where does he post the openings again, Craigslist?"

"Either that or Facebook, I can't remember."

Leslie felt like herself again for the first time in months. Laughing with Clint was therapeutic. Maybe joining up with SHIELD was the answer she had been looking for all along. It was a new purpose for her life. Maybe they could even help her with the toxicity issue if she made the secret known. Their scientists were always top notch.

Clint moved to make his exit, opening up one of the many windows in Leslie's office for a good shot. He took one of his arrows from the quiver and attached a grapple extension to it.

Leslie rolled her eyes. "I have a front door you know."

"Well aware, sugar." With a silly wink, he shot the arrow out the window and swung into the cityscape, completely out of sight.

"You're no Peter Parker!" she shouted out the window in his general direction. "Don't come crying to me when you bust your ass on a building!"

…

…

…

Leslie had just gotten back to her penthouse. Work was absolutely hectic. Damage control would be a thing of the past in due time, though. She just had to wait until the merger was over. Soon enough she would be free at last.

"Home sweet home," she mumbled to herself as she punched in the entry code on the keypad. When she opened the door she was perplexed to hear her TV on. She made a beeline for the living room to find Nick Fury on her couch. The SHIELD Director was watching _Supernanny _and eating some of the cookies she had baked with Loki.

"Phil Coulson always liked this show," quipped Fury loud enough for Leslie to know he had seen her come in. He kept his eye on the television. "It's a shame he's not here to watch it."

Leslie gritted her teeth and glared him from the kitchen. "Are you trying to guilt trip me? I assume you never got the memo from Barton."

"Barton got to me just fine. I actually believed him until I came here."

"What the hell are you evening talking about?"

Leslie quickly answered her own question just by looking down. On the kitchen table rested the notes from the spell book and baggies of raw materials. Half of the stuff could not be found anywhere on Earth. Fury was assuming too much.

"If you're going to turn yourself into some Asgardian freak show then I'm terminating your standing with SHIELD."

_Well for your information I'm not even going to use this crap, but let me humor you for a minute_. Leslie came into the living room and shut the TV off before standing in front of it.

"If there's a no Asgardian policy shouldn't we expel Thor too?" Her voice was dripping with attitude.

"Actually it's more of a no unstable bitches policy."

"Ouch," she snapped. "For what it's worth that alien bastard broke my heart. I would throw that junk on the table away but it could be important in Asgard. I'll just give it to Thor next time he's here so he can take it back with him."

"You have _no _intentions of meddling around in that witchcraft?" Fury gave Leslie an intimidating stare down for a man with only one eye.

"None whatsoever. You have my word. Hell, you can even take the materials with you to SHIELD and have it delivered to Thor yourself. That way it's out of my possession."

"I'll take you up on that offer, Leonards." Fury got up to gather the items from the kitchen. "From what Barton tells me you're finally back to normal."

"As normal as I'll ever be," she joked with an eye roll. "Did he mention anything about going full-time to you?"

"I'll consider it." Fury turned to make his exit once he had everything he needed. "Show me you're stable and I'll have you on-boarded immediately."

_I am perfectly stable, Director. But fine, we can play the waiting game._ "I look forward to on-boarding by the end of the week, sir."

"Presumptuous, aren't we?"

"Would you expect any less from me?"

"Touché. Maybe you really are back after all." He opened the door and gave one last message over his shoulder before he left. "And Leonards?"

"Yeah?"

"Apologize to Stark, will you? He's been a whiny wreck through all of this. You're the only thing that's gonna shut him up."

"Roger that, sir." Leslie gave a humble wave as he left the penthouse. "I owe you that much and more, Tony," she whispered to herself.

…

…

…

Tony Stark perched himself up against the bar at The Gala Royale. His eyes scanned over the dancing and gossiping crowd as prominent Stark and Lyrhon employees mingled about. He searched over and over again for Leslie somewhere in the crowd.

_I hope she shows_, he thought to himself worriedly. His fingers drummed the bar's granite surface in an obnoxious rhythm. It was all he could to do quell his nerves aside from drinking his face off.

Just at that moment Leslie Leonards entered The Gala Royale. Dressed in a stunning hotrod red cocktail dress with fine gold jewelry, her heels clicked their way over to Stark at the bar.

"Hey, cutie," she joked as she popped up before him.

"Leslie!" Stark let out a string of strange noises and flailed his arms about before finally hugging her tightly. "You're alive! That's, uhh… that's good!"

The brunette pulled herself off of him and gave him a sheepish look. "Yeah, I'm really sorry about everything. You were right from the get-go."

"I heard reindeer games didn't come back with you."

"Yeah he stayed in Asgard. Good riddance, honestly. I'll kill him myself if I ever see him again." Leslie played with one of the many curled hairs in her up-do. "I wanted to apologize to you all day."

"Forget about it." Stark snapped his fingers to catch the bartender's attention and ordered both of them long island iced teas. "I'm just glad you're back."

"Me too," Leslie gave him a cute little smile. "I'm impressed you remember my favorite drink."

"You have impeccable taste my dear. Most women like that fruity bullshit. You go straight for the behemoth of cocktails." The former alcoholic gave her an approving look. "I like women who know how to drink."

"You like women in general," corrected Leslie. "If it's got a pulse you'll pound it."

"Shhhhhh," Stark waved her statements off with his hand. "That's neither here nor there." He scooped the LITs up as soon as the bartender finished making them and handed the better looking one to Leslie. "Less ice, more juice. I'm being nice tonight."

"Aw, how sweet," she joked. "You gave me the better liquor? Mr. Stark, how debonair of you! Perhaps I shall thank you with a dance later."

The playboy winked in delight. "I'll dazzle you."

It was absolutely refreshing to be back on good terms with the CEO. Leslie valued her relationship with him above most others. The recent drama had taken quite a toll on it but he seemed just as determined as her to let bygones be bygones. They missed each other's company too much to be petty anymore.

The two enjoyed a hardy round of drinks and jokes. Leslie began to get suspicious after an hour passed without any sign of Pepper.

"Where's the girl tonight? Other plans?" Leslie twisted the mixing straw around in her third LIT with her tongue.

Stark's happy demeanor turned a bit dark at the mention of Pepper's name. "We, uh, hit a rough patch this week. She's in Cali."

"Oh…" The brunette instantly felt bad for asking. "Sorry, I didn't know."

"Yeah it's stupid, I don't know." Stark downed the last of his drink and ordered another. He was on his fifth. "She hasn't picked up my calls in days so I stopped trying."

Feeling awkward and guilty, Leslie tried to change the subject a bit. "Speaking of which, sorry for all the missed calls. If memory serves you left me sixty four calls and thirty nine voicemails."

"Don't ever scare me like that again, Starship." Stark's seriousness could only be lessened by the use of that stupid nickname. He had told her once that Axiom was the name of the space cruiser in Disney-Pixar's WALL-E. She had never seen the movie before and after that comment she vowed she would never make an effort to. 'Starship' was perhaps the weirdest nickname he had ever given her.

"Is Leslie really that hard to say?" she groaned.

"It's _two_ syllabus. Exhausting."

"So is 'starship'!"

"Less talking, more drinking." Stark motioned to the LIT she had only neglected for a minute at most.

"I'm not a tank like you. I'm pretty sure I'm drunk right now." Leslie rolled her eyes. "So going to regret this in the morning."

"That's the beauty of it, though. It isn't morning yet." Stark grinned playfully and pulled Leslie away from the bar. "Enjoy the night, will you? We're fusing together – two becoming one – and I think that's worth celebrating, don't you?"

"Was that an innuendo? I'm too blasted to tell." Leslie struggled to keep lady like posture in her golden heels as they made their way to the dance floor.

"By the way thanks for sporting the Iron Man theme tonight. It's cute."

Leslie looked down at her bright red dress and gold accessories, then back to Stark. "Oh, yeah, that's right. I did that."

The CEO laughed and pulled Leslie in for a supported dance. She stood no chance at standing on her own for too long.

"You're too innocent. It kind of makes me sick."

"Innocent? Me? Hah!" Leslie snorted with a giggle. "Why, because I'm not an alcoholic? What I lack in tolerance I make up for in bed. Believe me."

"Hmmm. Not sure that I can." Stark scratched his goatee and gave a casual I-don't-give-a-shit glance off to one side. "Can't say I've ever known first hand. I try not to run on rumors and hearsay."

"I could always show you, Mr. Critic." Leslie gave a coy look his way.

Normally the man would have had a hard time taking advantage of a friend while she was drunk. It wasn't like she was a nameless hooker in a bar he could pick up with ease. She was Leslie Leonards, colleague in all things both corporate and justice alike. The only reason he caved to temptation was his prior knowledge. He knew she liked him and wouldn't wake up with regrets in the morning. What was there to lose?

"We'll see how well you match up to your reputation, Leonards. I'm quite the excellent judge of, uh… _talent_."

He gave a suggestive look at her that sent the two CEOs into a round of light PDA. They only stopped kissing once they both realized there were a couple hundred other pairs of eyes staring them down.

"Have you _seen_ her?" scoffed Tony at the judging eyes. "Tell me you wouldn't want this."

Leslie giggled and waved at the crowd, half of which we were her employees. "That goes both ways, people. Look at this sexy beast!"

The two broke into a fit of laughter and walked off the dance floor and outside. Stark supported Leslie the entire way down the red carpet back to his limo. Once they pulled away from The Gala Royale, Stark pinned the brunette down on the long stretch of couch and kissed her in hungry desire. Leslie fought with uncoordinated hands to unbutton Stark's dress shirt and rip off his bowtie. The two were half naked by the time they made it back to Stark's place.

Laughing like idiots, they ran upstairs but never made it to the bedroom. Both too impatient, they floundered onto the couch in the living room and finished undressing each other. Stark hesitated before going any further and bent down to whisper to his evening partner.

"Are you sure about this?"

Leslie responded by nibbling on his weak spot between his neck and shoulder. Stark felt his eyes roll to the back of his head for a moment and nodded.

"Okay, got it, you're good to go."

Leslie shrieked in ecstasy as they went at it. Oh how she wished she hadn't drank so much! She could hardly walk, let alone let her freak flag fly. Once they finished and Stark collapsed on top of her she let out a good laugh patted him on the back.

"We'll have to try this again sometime. Y'know, when I can actually do something."

Stark mumbled some kind of incoherent noise that Leslie took for a yes. The two eventually peeled themselves up and tried to get composed before bed.

"You're staying the night, Starship," ordered Stark as he brushed his teeth.

"Don't have to ask me twice."

Leslie was putting her underwear back on when she began to lose her footing and flopped into his bed. Stark laughed at her from the bathroom and came out to join her under the covers.

Almost instinctually she wrapped her arms around him. The two chatted about silly nonsense subjects for a few minutes before time got the better of them. They yawned and fell asleep spooning one another, a smile on both of their faces for the first time in a while.


	14. The First Time We Met

_**Quick Note**_

**This is going to have steamy moments here and there! Figured I'd say it officially if the end of the previous chapter didn't convey that message. It'll never be super graphic – well within the T rating, I think! If you disagree feel free to let me know.**

…

…

…

A very hung over Leslie leaned up against one of the walls in Stark's shower. The hot water felt soothing as it ran over her body. Lucky for her she had been spared the headache; she only dealt battle with unnerving nausea. Searching about for a shampoo to use she found the one that must have been Tony's favorite. It smelled delightfully like him but was not for her. Eventually she found one that claimed to smell of strawberry fields and lathered up.

The scent of the shampoo churned her stomach. She was eager to get it out of her hair and quickly rinsed it all out. The reality of everything that had happened yesterday was still sinking in.

_Knock, knock, knock._

"Mind if I come in?" Stark's silky voice came from outside the bathroom door.

Leslie was operating a little on the slow side. "You know I'm showering, right?"

"Um…. Yes. That's kind of the point." Tony squinted in confusion. "You okay?"

"Yeah, sorry, just a little hung over." Leslie rolled her eyes at herself. _He's trying to get busy with you in the shower, idiot. Try to be a little smoother. _"Come in!"

Stark came into the bathroom and dropped the pair of boxers he was wearing instantly. He was in the shower in a second and kissing Leslie's neck. Her brain was still too fried to register any of this.

"Tony?" she asked a bit too calmly for someone who should have been in pleasure.

The billionaire moved back a little and stared at Leslie like she had three heads. "You _sure_ you're okay?"

"I don't know, I just feel wrong about this. What with Pepper and all—"

"That doesn't matter now," growled Stark. He seemed to respond even worse today to her name than he did last night. "It doesn't matter at all."

"I think I should be the one asking you if _you're _alright." Leslie tried to absorb the fact that she was having a naked heart-to-heart with her soon-to-be co-worker in _his shower_.

"She's with Happy," he spat. "Happy Hogan."

"How the hell did _that_ happen?" Leslie was beside herself. "It wasn't because of me, was it?"

"Ehhhh, well, yes and no," Tony took Leslie by the waist and pulled her close to him. "It wasn't last night. She doesn't even know about that. It was my franticness over you during all that Loki bullshit."

Leslie slid her arms around him and tried to follow. "What do you mean by franticness?"

"I lost it when you were with him. It made no sense and I couldn't stand you hurting yourself like that. It bothered me _so much_ to see you with him. I think it made Pepper jealous." He sighed and continued. "I couldn't talk about much else. It was always _what_ you were doing and _how_ you were acting. The day I caught you and him in bed together was the day she left for California. I haven't seen her since."

"I'm so sorry! It _was_ all my fault!" Leslie gripped him tight. Hadn't she wanted this before? Her advances towards the man were self centered. She never cared about his relationship. But now that it was reality and crumbling before him the guilt was beginning to crawl into her brain.

"Starship, calm your jet engines." Tony ruffled her sopping wet hair and smiled down at her. "We've had problems for a while. This was just the final push that made it all cave in. You ever think it might be better this way?"

"How the hell is it better?" She was overflowing with guilt. "You seem way too okay for a guy that just lost his girlfriend."

"Maybe because I've already found someone worthwhile… and she's been staring me in the face for quite some time." His lips curled into a knowing smile that whispered the sweetest words to Leslie over the sound of the shower. "Would you still want me, Leslie?"

"You're asking me out in a _shower_?" Leslie shook her head and stared at him incredulously. "We're merging our companies, you just broke up with Pepper, I just got used by an Asgardian psychopath – who slept with me _several _times over might I add – and you're asking me out in a god damn _shower_?"

"Yeah, isn't that obvious?" Stark was being a cheeky bastard as always. Leslie loved that about him, even if it did drive her nuts sometimes.

"I can't even deal with you." The dripping wet brunette rolled her eyes. "My life is beyond words right now."

"Oh… guess you need some time?" Stark should have figured with all she had been through that this wouldn't be so easy.

Leslie laughed. "Calm _your _jet engines, Iron Whore. I didn't say no, per se."

The two gently leaned in for a kiss but it was stopped short. The female was suddenly overcome with another wave of nausea and quickly stumbled out of the shower to vomit in the toilet. _Oh my god, could I be any less attractive right now? Just kill me._

Stark avoided eye contact with the spectacle. "I've been there before, chickadee."

"I'll never understand how." She caught her breath a bit before another round of vomit forced its way out. "I'm never letting you order drinks for me again."

The chuckling man turned off the water in the shower and grabbed a towel for around his waist. "Hang on, I'll hook you up with a primo remedy." He wrapped a towel around Leslie before leaving her to continue in peace.

…

…

…

Leslie sat in a bathrobe at the kitchen table, her damp hair up in a twist. Stark was fixing up some greasy foreign food on the stove for her. _It'll help settle your stomach_, he said. She couldn't follow the logic but she wasn't about to question the former alcoholic.

"Sorry for killing the world's weirdest moment before." She felt incredibly embarrassed. The last time she ever got sick from drinking was at an off-the-wall party her freshman year of college. She was twenty-eight now. This was completely out of character.

"It happens…" Stark's tone of voice suggested he had probably been in the same position many times over. He fiddled around with the food in the pan. "Does Starship have an answer for 'Iron Whore' yet?"

"You just watched me throw up naked. You're seriously still asking me out?"

"Yeah, pretty much."

Leslie let out a soft giggle. "_Sure_, I'd be delighted."

The two were completely messed up people in their own rights. Stark was a former alcoholic with an abusive childhood. He had a rough time growing up and inherited the world on his shoulders when his father died. Between her busy father and sick mother, Leslie raised herself through childhood. She had gone to college at a young age – graduating with her Masters in Business Administration at nineteen – but was hardly the whiz she needed to be for the industry. The traumatic deaths of her father Lyle and boyfriend Darren had been a lot for her to handle in hear early twenties. She figured Stark had it _far_ worse on the whole but her recent dealings with Loki had brought her pain level up a few notches.

They were two broken people that fit well together.

"Hopefully I'm better in the sack than that psycho." Stark couldn't help his manly curiosity.

Leslie blushed, mortified. "Last night's kind of a blur so I can't answer that just yet."

The cooking CEO couldn't help but laugh. "You need to just disappear in Europe or something for a week. Might I suggest Southern Italy? Seriously, clear your head and forget about life."

"I'm done running from everything, Tony." She scrunched her nose as Stark put a plate of Mexican cuisine before her. It would have been scrumptious if it weren't dripping in grease.

"Don't give me that face. Eat it."

"_All _of it?"

"The more the merrier."

Leslie groaned and began working on one of the enchiladas. "This looks like it'll make me worse!"

"Trust me. I'm a professional." Stark gave her a cocky little smirk that shut her up instantly. There really was no reason to question him.

The two exchanged smiles and reached out to grab each other's hand. _At last, something feels right_, thought Leslie in absolute bliss.

…

…

…

"THEY DID WHAT?" Thor's horror stricken voice boomed in horror as he stomped down one of the palace halls. An exasperated Lady Sif trailed behind him.

"The council thought that all of his deeds on Midgard warranted some reward!" She tried to explain though she disagreed with the matter as well. "Loki's magic is not fully restored but they have returned half of his skill to him."

"My brother is a _master_ of magic! Even less than half of his potential is incredibly dangerous!" Thor was livid with the probationary council's decision. He had truly wanted progress for his brother and believed Loki could one day deserve his powers back. But he knew for sure that this was _much_ too soon.

"Do you know his whereabouts?" asked a distressed Sif.

"No, unfortunately I do not. Last I knew he was in one of the gardens and—"

Thor was quickly cut off by three breathless guards as they ran towards the Asgardian deities. The look of washed-out horror on their faces was traumatizing.

"What is it?" demanded Thor though he feared he already knew the answer.

One of the guards cried out in sheer panic. "It's Loki – he's gone missing!"

…

…

…

Once Leslie had gotten over her nausea by the mid-afternoon, she and Stark spent a day together out and about in New York City. It was amazing how much they both had not seen despite spending so much time here. From parks to restaurants and everything in between, it was like they were discovering New York for the first time together.

In a spur of the moment decision they decided to cause a little mayhem in the Museum of Natural History. The two snuck into the elephant exhibit and climbed on top of the pachyderm models. They pretended to be cowboys on the Savannah until a security guard chased them clear out of the building.

They laughed all the way downtown and dined in Little Italy after sunset. They were truly content with one another. Yes, stress did await them outside their own little world, but for just a moment they silently agreed to pretend none of it mattered. Today was just about the two of them. It was a well needed mental vacation for them both.

"I'm kind of curious," Leslie stated over dinner, "do you remember the first time we met?"

Stark made a puffing noise, scratching his goatee in thought. "That was years ago. You were still in college, weren't you?"

"Yes, I was visiting on break from Harvard." She wished she had been smart enough to attend the prestigious university but in truth her father had bought her way in.

"Oh, yeah!" Stark lit up in recollection. "I remember that _way_ too well."

_oOoOo Flashback Scene oOoOo_

Lyle Leonards held his daughter's hand as they traversed through the halls of Stark Industries in California. Leslie's face was pink with embarrassment. Being toted around like a child in public was mortifying. After all, she was turning nineteen later that year.

"You can let me go you know," she pleaded. "I promise I can walk next to you."

Lyle reluctantly let her go. He had become very attached to Leslie ever since his wife Rhonda passed away. It would be seven years this winter but the pain had only dulled a little with time. He had developed an irrational fear that Leslie might one day die as well. She was flattered by his concern at first but it had grown annoying as time went on.

"Stay close," he ordered as they made their way to Stark's receptionist.

Leslie rolled her eyes and stuffed her hands in the pockets of her Harvard sweatshirt. She was supposed to be catching up with friends from home, not tagging along on her father's business affairs. _Experience_, he always said, _you can never get enough experience_.

"Mr. Leonards," the young voluptuous receptionist stood up to greet the CEO. "Mr. Stark is waiting for you in his office. You can go on in."

He gave the pin-up looking blonde a firm handshake and thanked her before he entered Stark's office with his daughter in tow.

"Tony!" he chirped as he shut the door behind him. Leslie kept quiet off to the side, a painfully bored expression on her face.

The young Tony Stark had his back to them while he was on the phone, but the sound of Lyle's voice prompted the end to that call. The attractive male spun around and greeted the Leonards' with a bright smile. He was clean shaven, chiseled, and absolutely gorgeous.

Leslie suddenly seemed to care about the meeting now. She perked up a bit and wished she wasn't dressed like such a hobo in her sweatshirt and blue jeans. College had turned her in to a twenty-four-seven bum.

"Lyle, my man, what's happening!" He came across the room for a cliché handshake.

The buddy-buddy vibe between her father and Stark bothered Leslie immensely. The two had never interacted before and were in two separate industries. _What a crock of corporate bullshit_, she thought with displeasure.

"I was surprised to get a call from your people," added Stark before his attention quickly shifted to Leslie. Even though she was only eighteen and dressed in street clothes her face was still naturally beautiful. She didn't need makeup to catch Stark's perverted attention. "And who is _this_ young lady?"

"This is my daughter Leslie," boasted Lyle. "She's on break from Harvard and wanted to tag along on all my duties today."

_Correction; YOU wanted ME to tag along. I eat, sleep and breathe business at school. The point of vacation is to escape what you're studying! _Leslie kept her inner irritation and bay and greeted Stark with a cute little smile.

"Pleasure to meet the prodigy in the flesh," she remarked. "We do case studies on your company in my scenarios class quite often."

Stark gave a confident smirk at the remark. Of course he was a textbook example of success. "So then you're quite familiar with what we do here."

"War profiteering," Leslie stated bluntly. Lyle's face drained of all color.

Stark burst out laughing and gave the young woman a pat on the shoulder. "That's a cold way to put it, kid. I consider the industry more 'national defense' than anything else."

"Regardless, it's the opposite of what daddy's company believes in." Leslie gave an equally confident smirk back at the CEO. She was not going to let him charm her into betraying the ideals she was raised with. _We will always build fun over a gun_, she thought, her father's mantra having instilled itself within her.

"Yeah, pretty aware of that, kid." Stark was not too fond of the girl anymore. Attractive or not, this punk had an attitude that rubbed him the wrong way. "This all makes me a little confused, actually. Your company reached out to me about scheduling a meeting for some kind of joint production?"

"That wasn't authorized by me," corrected Lyle. "I'm not sure who made that decision but I came here to clear things up in person. I wanted to apologize for wasting your time."

Stark shrugged. "I figured it was some kind of mix up. I kill, you thrill. Where's the overlap?"

"There isn't any," remarked Leslie with blunt sassiness. "Let us know if you ever hear from our company again. I can personally guarantee you it's _definitely _a mistake."

_Well that was a burn_, thought Stark with a grimace. _This kid's laced with venom. Not really sure if I dig it or hate it._

"Well, we don't want to take up anymore of your time!" interjected Lyle in a nervous struggle to control his daughter's mouth. "Sorry again for the false communications."

"Forget about it," assured Stark with a warm smile. "Children will always make prank calls so long as there are phones."

_Ass_, thought Leslie with a glare. _That was definitely a jab at me_.

"Peace out, dude." The young girl gave him a sarcastic salute with her left hand – a purposeful sign of disrespect – and exited the office with swagger.

Lyle looked like he was ready to roll over and die. "Good day, Mr. Stark."

"Goodbye," he returned as Lyle left his office.

"Will you at least attempt to control yourself?" he heard Lyle snap at Leslie once the door had shut.

Stark had to laugh out loud to himself at that. _Okay, I think I definitely dig it._

_oOoOo Flashback Scene End oOoOo_

The two were nearly in tears with laughter by the time their entrees arrived.

"You were such a bitch!" claimed Stark with a wild grin. "It was kind of hot."

"Ew, you creep, I was _barely legal_ then!" Leslie scrunched her nose at him but giggled anyway. "Was it my sexy outfit that charmed you?"

"More like that terrible attitude, actually. It's kinky thinking of you trying to put me in my place." He gave her a provocative look from across the table.

"Oh don't you worry, I'll take care of that tonight." Leslie returned the seductive look with one of her own. Guess she wasn't going back to her penthouse just yet.


	15. Into The Abyss

_**Quick Note**_

**WOW! I'm so happy this story's getting a lot of attention! (I crept on the hits/visitors stats a bit, hehe.)**

**I think I finally have this solidly plotted out to the end. I've changed the story's description and the genres to reflect this a bit more accurately now.**

**I have to ask! Team Stark or Team Loki? I'm not trying to turn this into some Twilight-esque drama haha, just really curious where you guys are! Before you decide though read this chapter through.**

…

…

…

Leslie had just finished mooching breakfast at Stark's place when she was on her way out. There was much to attend to. The merger was officially set to complete at noon tomorrow and her office needed to be cleared out. She no longer had a place at her own company's building anymore.

"Hey, Tony?" she asked as he walked her out. "You sure you're okay with me jumping ship? I feel kinda bad."

"C'mon Leslie, don't do that to yourself. This isn't what you want."

Stark had heard her talk very passionately about joining SHIELD as a full time agent. To embark on missions like Clint and Natasha did, to have a true impact on the security of the world without the need for publicity… he knew it was exactly what she needed.

"Listen to me," he said while pulling her in for a hug. "Go save the world for a living. I'll be fine. I promise I'll take good care of your baby."

"Please don't call it a baby." She scrunched her nose at the word but quickly followed it up with a smile and a kiss on Stark's cheek. "I trust you."

"Obviously." He ruffled her hair and initiated one more brief make-out session that was cut short by JARVIS on the intercom.

_Sir, it appears Mr. Banner is outside._

Right on cue, Bruce Banner opened the front door and walked inside to find Stark and Leslie gripped to one another for dear life. He gave a curious look at them and smiled playfully.

"So uh, you two are a 'thing' now?" he asked, motioning between the two of him with a hand.

The couple blushed and stepped apart with nervous laughter. Banner rolled his eyes.

"I called that," he quipped amusingly. "When we were all on the ship, I mean. I saw it coming."

"I bet," retorted Stark with an eyeroll.

"I'll leave you two boys to play with your gadgets." Leslie gave Stark a quick peck goodbye and gave Banner an awkward fist-bump. "Stop being such a stranger, green bean."

Banner scratched the back of his head. "I'll do lunch with you sometime. We'll catch up. Fury said you'd be coming into SHIELD soon so…"

"He said that?" Leslie lit up like the Fourth of July and squealed. "I knew he'd take me in right away. Yes!" She gave Banner an overenthusiastic hug. "Thanks for telling me! You just made my day." As she opened the door to make her exit she winked at the scientist behind the Hulk. "I'm holding you to lunch, mister."

"Just remember I called dibs on that already," interjected Stark with a curious eye on Banner. Of course he was only kidding but the fellow scientist wasn't one to pick up on that.

"Relax, I suck at relationships. The other guy tends to ruin my prospects." Banner gave a lighthearted shrug. "She's more your speed anyway. No offense, Leslie."

"None taken, Doctor." With a wave to both gentlemen, Leslie Leonards was out the door and on her way to Lyrhon Incorporated for the last time.

…

…

…

Nick Fury had just dropped off the Asgardian contraband in one of the vaulted lockers. Agent Maria Hill met him outside the room once he remerged into the hallway.

"She wasn't seriously going to use that stuff, was she?" Agent Hill had a hard time believing Leslie was capable of something so stupidly reckless.

"She may have considered it briefly but Leonards isn't the type of person to go through with something like that." Fury and Hill made their way towards the bridge. The hellicarrier was docked in the ocean for now. "I wouldn't want her on my team around the clock if she could be that stupid of a threat."

"Around the clock? Sir, is she coming on full time with us?" Hill kept it professional but was smiling inwardly. She was often deprived of ass-kicking estrogen around SHIELD. Natasha was a woman, yes, but very serious and often 'out of town.' Leslie knew how to let her hair down.

"She's leaving her company in Stark's hands and expressed interest in coming on with us. Agent Barton went so far as to give me a letter of recommendation for her." Fury rolled his one visible eye while Hill fought to subdue a laugh.

Once they were completely out of sight Loki materialized into the vaulted lockers facility. With some light magic he reached inside straight through the metal where Fury had placed the contraband and snickered as he pulled out the pages.

"Leslie, Leslie, Leslie…" He smirked and shook his head. "You're so pathetic." Then he vanished just as quickly as he had arrived.

…

…

…

Quinn and Leslie stood beside one another in the office. It looked like such a drab place now having been stripped of all its adornments. A few boxes sat at Leslie's feet. They were a collection of her life that had just crossed over the bridge to memories.

"You'll like working for Tony." The brunette wanted to reassure her friend as best as she could. Quinn harbored a little malice for Leslie's sudden bailout.

"He's not you." The small framed blonde sighed and latched on to Leslie. "No one is."

The brunette laughed and hugged her friend back. "Relax, it's not like I'm dying. You can always come visit me. We'll do dinner after you're settled in at Stark Industries. You know I'll want dirt on everything. Who's my favorite gossip machine?"

Quinn laughed. "I am."

"There we go! Now stop being so sentimental. You're killing me here."

The two friends had been together since their days as roommates freshman year. Quinn was someone who, despite her rather ditzy appearance, belonged at Harvard Business School. She was a goldmine of intelligence and information. Her ability to step in and help with damage control after Darren was murdered helped keep the company alive. In truth she was the pseudo-brains behind the operation. Stark was aware of this fact and would not have Quinn filing papers all day. She was worth much more than that.

"You're gonna change the world, Quinn. Stark's company has such a great agenda now. We're meant to work together." Leslie gave her friend's hand a reassuring squeeze. "It's high time people started knowing _your _name, not mine."

The two girls embraced in an emotional hug. They both pretended they hadn't heard each other sniffle at some point. As Leslie walked out of her office with the boxes in tow another chapter in their decade of friendship came to a close.

…

…

…

Leslie dropped the boxes off on her kitchen table with a heavy sigh. Letting go was going to be hard but she wanted to keep the emotions to herself. She allowed the happy façade to diminish as she changed out of her professional attire. Standing in the middle of her bedroom, her eyes kept flickering between her closet and the Asgardian armor that was lying out on her dresser.

_I can't believe this. I can't bring myself to throw it away_. The woman scoffed at herself and threw on an AC/DC t-shirt and blue jeans. _Like hell if I'll ever wear it again._

As she worked her way down the halls back towards her living room she heard someone rustling about. _Fury? Oye. That man doesn't know the meaning of doorbells._

"You ever hear of knocking, Fury?" she called down the hall in an assumption that it was him. No voice answered back. _Funny, shouldn't he give me some snarky reply?_

She could not have been more terrified at the man who stood in her living room. It was definitely not Nick Fury.

Leslie wanted to scream but no noise would come out. She was too terror stricken. In an almost natural reflex she transformed herself into Axia and armed herself with an electrical sword.

Loki was standing casually in the living room in full Asgardian attire. Her attempt to defend herself made him smirk. Even with only half his magic back she would need back-up to take him on.

"Leslie, _darling_," he cooed in a sinister voice, "that's no way to greet your lover now is it?"

"Whatever we had is _over_, Loki." The electrical sword let off a few sparks. She had to be careful not to channel too much anger through it. "Leave now while I'm still being nice."

Loki vanished and quickly materialized again behind her. He quickly pinned her arms behind her back, forcing the sword to drop to the ground and dissipate into thin air. He held her in a painful twist. Any harder and her arm would probably break.

"You meddle in things that aren't yours to meddle in," he hissed in her ear. With one hand he produced the pages from the magic book and held them in front of her. "Allow me to help you with this. You'd kill yourself trying, mortal."

"And if I'm not interested?" Leslie winced through the pain.

"I'm afraid I do not leave you with a choice in this, my dear." His icy presence was chilling her to the bone. "Either you return to Asgard with me and allow me to perform the ritual, or…"

Leslie gulped. "Or _what_?"

"I'll have you murder Stark so slowly and intimately that he'll have just enough time to stare at you in horror before you finish him off." Leslie's pulse went through the roof. "I would have you kill yourself after but I'd much rather you go about the rest of your pathetic life with the guilt of his death on your shoulders."

"You… you wouldn't!" Leslie could hardly keep her mind straight in panic.

"_Really_? Would I not? I believe I leveled a sizeable amount of your precious city. One man's life is of no great challenge or consequence to me."

Leslie stood in silence for what seemed like an eternity. Her mind frantically tried to think of a way out, anything at all, but she came up empty handed. She could remain as Axia and slowly kill herself perhaps but then what? Once she was dead Loki would become enraged take it out on Earth, specifically Stark and others she loved. She imagined him, Quinn and the rest of The Avengers dead in a heap. The thought was absolutely mortifying.

"Fine…" she whispered at last. Her voice was shaky and filled with fright. "Take me with you and do what you want. Just don't hurt anyone, _please_."

Loki chuckled menacingly in victory. "You have my word."

The villain used his magic to conjure the Asgardian armor onto Leslie's figure. She closed her eyes in defeat and wished she could at least have had time to say goodbye.

_Forgive me, Tony._

In an instant they were both gone.

…

…

…

**OH SNAP. Yeah, that just happened.**

**Now I ask again – Team Stark or Team Loki?**

**I feel like there's justifications for both. Stark and Leslie have a genuinely healthy relationship and have been acquainted for about ten years. They're very good at keeping one another in check. Yet as much of an evil psycho as Loki is, he's only doing all this crap because he's trying to get a second chance at love with Ejlonwe. Yeah, Leslie isn't Ejlonwe _at all_ but it's almost sad how much Loki will trick himself with his own lies just to "feel again," as he put it. Poor thing!**

**I'm curious where you fall on this debate! :)**


	16. Avengers Assemble

_**Quick Note**_

**Hello to the sudden jump in UK and Canadian readers! And thank you to all the new faves/alerts. You guys are making me so happy!**

**Yet this story is making me so sad. :( Let us continue.**

…

…

…

"She's off the radar?"

Nick Fury found himself in a mixture of confusion and rage at Agent Hill's news.

"We know for a fact she's nowhere on Earth." Hill folded her arms and concentrated. "I'd guess she's on Asgard but our intel doesn't corroborate this. Everything we have on her from the past few days says she wouldn't go back there."

"Willingly," added Fury. "She wouldn't go back there _willingly_."

"You don't think she's been kidnapped?" Hill was more angry than upset. She was an agent of SHIELD. Such weak reactions were trained out of her.

"I wouldn't be all too surprised if she was." Fury began down the hall towards the vaulted lockers with Agent Hill close behind. The two entered the facility and stared in shock when they discovered the pages were missing.

"This is impossible. Who could have gotten past our security without tripping a single sensor?" Hill was beside herself.

"Someone or some_thing _that doesn't operate like a 'mortal,'" stated Fury grimly. "Scramble The Avengers. Loki's up to something. We're not going to give him enough time to get any traction this time around."

"Right, I'm on it!" Agent Hill broke into a mad dash down the hall and back towards the bridge. She pressed her earpiece to relay the order. "Communications, assemble The Avengers! Loki has kidnapped Leslie Leonards and is suspected to be a threat! I repeat, Loki is suspected to be a threat! He has a hostage!"

…

…

…

Tony Stark and Bruce Banner were having a field day in one of the tech labs when Stark's video-com screen lit up. The SHIELD logo preceded the appearance of an agent from the helicarrier.

"This isn't good…" muttered Banner in misery. He sensed some sort of impending doom.

"Mr. Stark, Mr. Banner, I am Agent Norman West of SHIELD. We have a situation." Agent West looked to be the type who lacked a sense of humor. Stark wanted to crack a joke but reluctantly refrained. "We are assembling The Avengers again. You'll be briefed in detail upon arrival."

"You're kidding me." Banner's voice was full of despair. "We're doing this again so soon?"

"We should consider ourselves fortunate we've had peace for the six months it lasted." Agent West wasn't in the mood to keep the conversation going. "Evil never rests, Doctor. Your ride is outside."

And with that the transmission abruptly ended.

Stark and Banner exchanged bizarre looks. Confusion didn't even begin to describe it.

"Guess we're going outside?" asked Banner already making a beeline for the exit.

"Yeah, these guys really don't give us much of a choice." Stark grumbled a bit and left the labs with the fellow scientist.

…

…

…

"This isn't real," whispered Clint as he eyed the communicator on his wrist. There was a simple message in plain text: 'Avengers Assemble.' "Tasha, did you see this?"

The Black Widow peered over at Clint's communicator. Her brow furrowed at the message. She whispered back at him. "Guess we gotta go."

"Ready when you are." The two gave a quick nod to one another and came out from hiding.

They were in the middle of a recon mission in the stronghold of a terrorist center. With a few explosive arrows from Hawkeye's quiver and some serious martial arts on Natasha's part, they completely knocked out the gathering of twenty-some-odd terrorists.

"I really hate rush jobs," muttered Natasha as they darted out of the scene and disappeared into the night.

…

…

…

Steve Rogers had been arguing with a cashier at Target when he got the text message. He had just started using credit cards and didn't entirely understand the concept.

"Look man, it says your card's been declined!" snapped the frustrated minimum wage employee. The teenage girl's face was turning as red as her Target apron. "Either use another card or cash or _get out_."

Rogers was utterly innocent and helpless. He felt awful for being a nuisance to the poor girl.

"I don't have another card," he confessed. "Remind me of the total again? Maybe I have enough cash to cover it."

"It's $405.32," she stated flatly.

Hardly anyone ever dropped that kind of money on stuff at Target. Little did she know Rogers had never shopped there before and became so captivated with the store's convenience that he felt like he needed _everything._

Just as Rogers reached into his pocket to fetch his wallet he saw his cell phone was lit up. _That means I have a text message, right? _He pulled the phone out and flipped it open to the same message from Clint's communicator.

He glanced up over his phone at the cashier, suddenly very serious. "My apologies, ma'am. I can't purchase anything today."

As Steve bolted out of the convenience store the Target employee muttered a few foul words under her breath.

…

…

…

Within an hour the five had assembled at the meeting table on the bridge of the carrier. Once Nick Fury entered and began to pull up data on the screen the questions went flying.

"Where's Thor?" asked Steve.

"At Asgard. We have no formal means of communication with him," stated Fury bluntly. He readied himself for the next obvious question.

"Then what about Leslie?" asked Stark. There was an edge of overprotective concern to his voice.

"That…" Fury spun around to face them all, "… is half of the reason you're here right now."

An unsettling look appeared on everyone's faces.

"What happened to her?" Stark rose from his seat angrily, ready to punch the first person that gave him any reason to.

"Calm down and let Fury brief us," urged the Captain. "We're worried about her too."

"Leonards' last known location was her penthouse in Manhattan late this afternoon. About half an hour prior to her sudden disappearance someone or something broke into one of our vaulted lockers here on the carrier. In this locker was a collection of raw Asgardian materials and some spell book pages Leonards had taken from Asgard earlier this week."

"Wait, she was in _Asgard?_" Steve squinted at this fact. "How did that happen?"

"The Asgardians decided part of Loki's punishment would involve acts of repentance on Earth, specifically with those directly affected. He was performing deeds for Leonards for a couple weeks – primarily assisting in private research at her company's labs. During this time the two became rather… _well _acquainted."

Clint and Tony cringed at the phrase. They were the only two at the table who knew the extent of what had happened.

"Loki took Leslie to Asgard under friendly pretenses. Leslie returned the following day _alone_ in possession of the pages and materials. She offered these items up to SHIELD for guarding and eventual return to Asgard. We believe that these items being stolen and Leonards disappearing a mere thirty minutes afterwards are indeed connected. Our inability to pinpoint her location leads us to believe she's back in Asgard."

"She wouldn't go back there," interjected Stark. He was fuming mad. "She didn't steal anything from your lockers if that's what you're aiming at."

"We don't believe Leonards to be the culprit. All signs point to this being Loki."

Fury's words sent a jolt of terror through even the coolest customers at the table. Natasha winced at his name. They couldn't believe they were going to have to deal with him again.

"Can't Thor just grab Leslie and bring her back?" asked Clint.

"Things aren't that simple. Loki is the Asgardian God of Mischief and Lies. Odds are that if Thor even knows Leonards is there in the first place he is most likely under the impression that it's consensual."

"We need to get to Asgard," stated Natasha with fierce determination.

"The question is _how_," Captain America pondered aloud. "We don't have any means of traversing worlds, do we?"

"With the tesseract back in Asgard, no, we do not," confessed Fury. "I was hoping Banner and Stark could give us some help in this area. Our facilities are open to you around the clock. We need some kind of form of interstellar travel, _quick_."

"That's, uh… _quite _the task, Director." Bruce looked painfully pessimistic.

"Our only alternative is for Thor to suddenly drop in on us and take us there himself." Fury stared at the group intensely. "The odds of that happening aren't exactly in our favor."

Stark doubted his ability to complete Fury's task. Even with Banner's help they were being asked to achieve something no one else in the world had successfully done before. NASA couldn't even get a manned mission to Mars, let alone Asgard. How were two men supposed to trump all of that in a matter of hours?

"Then start praying," snapped Stark. "I'm gonna try my damned hardest but unlike the bastard who took Leslie _I'm _not a god."

In a fit of rage he stormed out of the meeting room. Everyone watched him leave with a look of sympathy.

"They just started dating," stated Bruce sadly. "He's taking this to heart."

Everyone was surprised by the news – especially Steve. The feeling of losing the one you loved was all too familiar to him. He rarely saw eye-to-eye with the hotheaded CEO but genuinely felt sorry for him now.

"I'm gonna go after him," stated Rogers before also vanishing from the room.

"What do you want us _non_-scientists to do?" asked Clint. "We're useless in the labs."

"I need you to be ready for anything," said Fury before making an exit. "Meeting adjourned."

The vague orders were terrifying. This was Nick Fury talking. The word "anything" was one of the scariest words in his vocabulary.

…

…

…

**I know this is kind of a brief chapter but I didn't want to assemble the team in one sentence. Trying to give a more movie-esque vibe to this… hopefully I don't suck too bad, haha.**

**Reviews as always are wonderful! And the question from last chapter still stands. Team Stark or Team Loki? I'm curious who supports who out there!**


	17. The Goddess Reborn

_**Quick Note**_

**It was so interesting to see through reviews and PMs where you guys stand! It seems pretty split down the middle which is super interesting. I didn't expect that.**

**Without further ado let's rev up chapter seventeen! So glad it's gotten this far. :)**

**And remember, that lonely little review button at the bottom of the page needs some love too~**

…

…

…

Leslie's heart rate was through the roof. She knelt frozen in fear on the cold, damp floor of the Magics Room. Her features were wrought with stress and exhaustion, a stark contrast to Loki's dementedly happy face. The Asgardian sorcerer scanned over the spell book pages in delighted concentration. With a firm nod to himself as if to confirm his thoughts he tossed the pages aside.

"You shall thank me for this one day, my dear." His cold eyes shot straight through to her soul. "Are you ready?"

"At least you have the courtesy to ask me that much." Leslie closed her eyes and took a deep breath, the air shaking in her lugs. "Let's get this over with."

Loki smirked as he began to mutter an incantation in his native Asgardian tongue.

Thick discharges of electrical magic began to shoot out of the ground around the kneeling mortal. The bands of energy twisted in a jagged dance around her as the incantation went on. The snapping and crackling noises echoed throughout the chamber's long halls. And soon, Leslie's screams did too.

The magic charges shot their way inside her body, twisting and turning the very fiber of everything that composed her being. The writhing mortal imagined that if one could ever feel their own DNA rip in half, this is what it must be like. The transformation was rejected several times over – killing the girl and reviving her in the same hand. She plunged in and out of consciousness. The only sign that she still lived at all came with her blood curdling screams.

At last the spell took. The sparks of magic dissipated as Leslie collapsed on the ground, a smoky residue steaming off of her motionless body.

Loki strode over to the woman and knelt down on one knee to examine his handiwork. He prodded her body with the edge of his staff – a mere shadow of the one he once possessed.

Leslie's body shook as she coughed, shattering the silence around her. She picked herself up weakly at first but strength quickly filled her demeanor. A pair of glowing gold eyes met Loki's in a frightening stare.

"How do you feel, Ejlonwe?" he asked her with thrill to his tone.

Leslie breathed deeply, slowly, as if she had never savored oxygen before.

"I feel _alive_," she hissed.

The God of Mischief gave a bone chilling cackle, taking pride in his successful work.

…

…

…

Tony Stark threw one of his tools clear across the lab in a fit of rage. Bruce Banner winced at the terrible clanging noise it made as it collided with the floor.

"We're not going to make much progress if we don't keep our heads level."

Bruce felt especially bad for Stark. He briefly knew Leslie for the time The Avengers assembled last and kept casual ties to her ever since. That was not to say he didn't feel upset at the news himself. He did. But no one took it as bad as Stark.

"I'm trying," groaned Tony as he fetched a replacement tool. "I just lose it when I think about what that bastard's doing to her."

"We don't know what he's doing," corrected Banner. He was desperately trying to be the optimist in the room. "Fury said last time they disappeared it was under 'friendly pretenses,' maybe it's just another quick visit."

"I don't think he'd scramble us over 'another quick visit,'" muttered Stark. "There's something he's not telling us… _again_."

"Planning to snoop out the answer?" Banner tinkered with a contraption that looked more like a laser than a mode of transportation. In truth he had no idea what he was doing.

Stark set his tools down and moved to exit the lab. "I was thinking of trying something a little more _direct_ this time."

The fuming CEO was on a direct path to Fury's office. Agent Hill was just leaving when he arrived. It was almost scary to see him so serious. Usually he was the last one to join the maturity bandwagon.

"Stark, what are you—"

Hill was completely cut off as Stark brushed past her into Fury's office. The Director sat at his desk – a rare place to catch him, actually – with some notes scattered about.

"Can I _help _you?" he asked, frustrated.

"What aren't you telling us?" snapped Stark. He was done with games.

"You think I'm not telling you something?" Fury rose from his desk and glared the CEO. "What _ever_ gave you that idea?"

Stark returned the glare. "The magic bullshit from the locker, what was it specifically?"

Fury hoped no one would pry him about that detail. He should have figured sooner or later someone would want to know. Of course it'd be Stark.

He sighed heavily. "If you must know… it was a transformative spell."

Stark narrowed his eyes. "What _kind _of transformation?"

"The kind that would turn a human into an Asgardian goddess," stated Fury sharply.

Stark stumbled back a step and tossed his hands into his hair. He let out a series of grunts and gasps for air as he absorbed Fury's words.

"We were hoping to keep that much under the radar for your sake," confessed the Director. "I don't know if it's even plausible. Loki was supposedly stripped of his magic but to steal the pages he must have used witchcraft to some degree."

"So he's back in power?" gasped out the mentally flailing Stark. "And he has her?"

"It appears so." Fury hardly finished his brief response before Stark was back out the door and running in the opposite direction.

…

…

…

Leslie and Loki walked alongside one another in eerie synchronization. The once out-of-place mortal in the floral sundress was gone. Now Leslie looked fitting in Asgard's atmosphere. Her strong presence in her armor was further emphasized by a new regal air about her. She looked disturbingly perfect as all Asgardian gods did. Flawless silky hair no amount of Midgardian product could produce, skin as smooth and soft as a newborn baby, crystalline eyes as gold as the richest armor, and a smile so perfect that anyone could melt at its warmth.

The warmth was a façade, however. It could be nothing further from the truth.

The spell book pages were something Leslie had not been utterly familiar with. The majority of it was in code that she assumed only Asgardian sorcerers could understand. Only the main label and a few other notes had been legible enough for her to discern the document's meaning in the first place.

Had she been able to crack the code she would have known the truth within the truth.

No amount of sorcery would ever be able to bring Ejlonwe back from the dead but Loki's spell casting had been an attempt at the next best thing. The nature of gods, such as Thor was of Thunder, Sif was of War or Loki was of Mischief and Lies, would become a part of Leslie's character just the same. Her nature, however, would derive from a goddess who had _died_ – in a sense, she would become a reincarnation. As a goddess, Leslie would be deprived of _any _memories whatsoever, whether they were of the previous goddess's or her own. Loki had assumed he could _will_ which deceased goddess's nature she would inherit.

He couldn't be more wrong.

"I hope you like it here," stated Loki awkwardly in the silence of the palace.

Leslie quirked one perfectly shaped brow and puckered her lips in confusion. "Why would I not?"

Loki struggled hard to surprise giddy laughter. _I've done it! I've genuinely done it! _He reached over and took Leslie's hand. "You have been missed dearly, Ejlonwe."

_So, this pathetic bastard thinks I'm Ejlonwe, hm? What a fool. Let's have a little fun with this. _Leslie snickered in her mind but returned the sweetest of smiles to Loki. "I have missed you dearly as well, Loki. I am glad to see you so well."

_Yes, glad indeed_, she thought with sarcasm. Had Loki known the nature he had conjured perhaps he would not wish to be so close to the newborn goddess. _You're going to be the first one I have a little fun with tonight._

Just at this moment, Thor rounded the corner and caught a glimpse of his brother and Leslie so close to one another. Instantly outrage consumed his features.

"Brother, I thought I ordered you to stay away from her." Gripping Mjolnir tightly, he held it out to the side as a passive warning of what could aggressively follow.

Loki gave a gentle squeeze to Leslie's arm before releasing her entirely.

"Thor, relax. I assure you all is well." Leslie let out a golden laugh and smiled sweetly, almost too much so. "We've resolved our differences. He is of no danger to me."

_No danger, you say? Why do I find this difficult to believe? _Thor kept his thoughts to himself and returned Leslie's smile with one of his own.

"I am happy to hear of this! Am I to believe that my brother is courting you?" Thor gave a silly eyebrow wiggle to Loki who scoffed and glared off to the side.

"_Yes_, Thor, I am courting her." The words were more sneered than cheery.

"He is quite the charmer once you look past the _terrible _personality defects!" offered Leslie in a cheery voice. It was so sarcastic and mocking that Loki had to shoot her a look. Thor merely laughed at her words.

_Well aren't you charming today. _Loki tried not to appear to off put by her words. Any slight issues between them would send Thor into a rampage with Mjolnir for sure.

"I have traversed quite a vast distance in my time – though not nearly as much as my brother, here – and I do believe you to be the perfect woman for him. No one else in the cosmos is more suited."

Thor gave a congratulatory hug to Leslie and got a chance to look her briefly in the eyes. That frighteningly pure shade of gold trumped all of his fears. In a sudden rush, he began to head further down the hall. "A merry day to you both! I shall see you in the Great Hall for a celebration tonight!"

"Thor, must we have such fanfare?" Loki scrunched his nose. "I would much prefer to keep my personal life _personal_."

"Nonsense! It shall be grand!" exclaimed Thor with another bellowing laugh as he rounded the next corner and vanished from sight.

As soon as he was surely beyond both their sight and hearing range Thor dropped the merry act, turning stone cold serious and grim. He quickly made his way to the weapons vault and procured the tesseract. In one swift vaporizing effect he was out of Asgard and on top of SHIELD's helicarrier. The loud thump his landing created set off the perimeter alarms. Sirens began blaring and red strobe lights appeared out of nowhere.

"Security breach in the external perimeter!" shouted Agent Hill from the bridge. "Get a live com link up to Quadrant EX-8, stat!"

All the monitors in the bridge were suddenly filled with the image of Thor, the tesseract clearly in hand. A wave of absolute shock and hope washed over Hill. She kept it compartmentalized well, however, and pressed her ear transmitter to relay the news.

"It appears we have a _guest_."

"Is he welcome?" asked Steve defensively. He was already on his feet and sprinting for his armor just in case.

"Yes," exclaimed Hill, just the slightest bit of professionalism slipping from her tone. "He's a _godsend_." The smile on her face was absolutely radiant.

"The Goddess of Chaos!" Thor screamed over the sirens that still blared, straight into the com link's cameras. His eyes were wild with fear. "She lives again in Lady Leslie!"

In a split second the radiant smile on Agent Hill's features melted into a terrified gaping face. "No… there's no way!"

…

…

…

**OH BOY!**

**Guess you didn't get what you bargained for, huh Loki? Prepare to be deceived by the only goddess who can put your trickery to shame! You wanted Ejlonwe? Tough luck there buddy. You got the Goddess of Chaos instead.**

**And on this sad day in this sad chapter, our beloved OC Avenger becomes their newest foe. :(**

**To be continued~**


	18. Black Magic Blackens Hearts

_**Quick Note**_

**Sorry the previous chapter was shorter than I wanted it to be. It was kind of a rush job but hopefully I can do this one some justice.**

**Let's pick it up where we left off!**

…

…

…

The Avengers were suited up and gathered around the table on the bridge, the mix of emotions in the room was absolutely insane. Thor's presence was both good and bad. No one was entirely sure of the appropriate way to approach the situation.

No one, of course, except Nick Fury.

"I am not sending you into battle without intel," announced the Director with Thor standing alongside him. "Thor here is gonna tell us what he knows. Listen up, because this could mean the difference between _life_ and _death_."

"Thank you," Thor said while nodding to Fury who now gave him the spotlight. "My friends, I fear that what we are dealing with is no laughing matter. My brother's exploits in this world were indeed terrible, but Leslie is more of a threat than he could ever be even on his best day."

Barton slumped a little in his seat. He didn't like where this was going at all.

"The Leslie Leonards we have all come to know and love is no longer with us," continued the Asgardian. "All that remains to some degree is her body. Right now it serves as a vessel to who I assume is Velora, the Goddess of Chaos. She once terrified the Nine Realms so much that she had the universe at her feet. In such a new born state I don't believe her to be that powerful, but it is only a matter of time before she works herself up to that state again."

"How did this Velora get inside of Leslie?" asked Steve, his mind struggling to take in the concept.

"In a word, witchcraft," answered Stark with a quick glare towards Fury. "Loki is a sorcerer and Asgard is his playground. He decided to have a little fun with Leslie and now he's probably stuck with more than he bargained for."

"In a sense, yes." Thor frowned. "My brother did not mean to channel Velora from the realms beyond. I would bet my life that he was trying to conjure Ejlonwe, the Goddess of Heart. She would have been absolutely no threat to us. This is merely a mistake."

"It's one hell of a mistake," snapped Barton. "How do you accidentally bring back a demon instead of an angel?"

"I am not knowledgeable enough to answer that confidently. Magic as Loki knows it has never been in my skill set." Thor hoped his fellow Avengers would believe his brother's innocence in all of this. "Ejlonwe was a dear friend of mine and her death marked a tragic day for all of Asgard. Loki loved her like no other." He sighed and tried to hold back sorrowful sympathy. His brother was one of the few subjects that could ever disrupt his macho bravado. "Leslie looked exactly like her. He was only trying to revive what he lost."

"Well he did a _great _job," interjected Steve. "I'm sorry but you can't ask us to feel sorry for him." For the Captain to sympathize with Tony on the subject of lost love was one thing, Loki was another. Rogers would always despise evil.

"To feel sorry or not is your choice and is of no consequence to me," retorted Thor with some offense. "I shall feel as I wish and you all can do the same. I do not believe that what he did was right, but he did not have malice towards the world in his heart with this act. The fact remains that Velora has returned and if we are ever to defeat her it must happen soon. The longer she remains free, the quicker she shall regain her strength."

"Are you asking us to _kill _Leslie?" asked an infuriated Tony.

It pained Thor to admit it, but Tony was right. "I can think of no other way to protect us all. No cage apart from that of Hel could ever keep her."

"There _must _me another way," suggested Banner. "We can't just waltz in there and try to rip a friend limb from limb."

"She's no friend," corrected Natasha grimly. "Not anymore."

Steve tried to turn the discussion in another direction. "Do you know anything about what Velora is capable of?"

"In Leslie's body I am not sure if she suffers from limitations, but…" Thor took a deep breath and exhaled sorely. "She can fight with incredibly strength, shape shift into anything imaginable, even climb inside and temporarily control the minds of the weak. There are any number of methods in which she can create the chaos she loves so much. None shall ever be quick. To wipe out an entire race in a single blow does nothing for her. She prefers slow deaths and watching the agony of all those around her. It is not the end result but the build up to it that satisfies her desires."

"What a sick monster," muttered Barton. "We have to get her out of Leslie somehow."

Thor was not optimistic. "I know not how this can be achieved. Apart from death, what solution is there?"

"You guys might freak out at this but…" Banner had everyone's attention in the room at once. "… We could always ask Loki for help?"

…

…

…

Velora and Loki were out in one of the courtyard gardens at the God of Mischief's suggestion. Nightfall would be coming soon and he wanted to share the last moments of daylight with who he believed to be Ejlonwe.

"I am incredibly grateful," admitted Velora with a sickeningly sweet smile. She wanted to play the part of Ejlonwe convincingly well for a little bit longer. "For you to have brought me back… it is quite romantic." She batted her eyelashes a little at the god.

Loki blushed and reached over to run a hand through her soft hair. "Do you really think so?" He found caring about the opinion's of others to be a strange feeling.

"I _know _so." Velora took Loki's free hand and laced her fingers with his. "You could not imagine the pain that came from living without you for so long. I could hardly bare it."

For the first time in what seemed like eternity Loki felt his heart rate speed up and his stomach go aflutter. The way Velora's eyes bore into him with such sweet passion almost left the silver tongued god speechless.

"Did you… did you die loving me?" he asked, struggling to keep his voice steady. For so long he had wanted t know the answer to that question.

"I died loving you and _more_, Loki." She slipped one hand around his neck and roped him in for a kiss.

The God of Lies could not resist it any longer. He quickly found himself pinning Velora to the soft courtyard grasses, showering her with every kiss he had ever longed to give her. She allowed the moment to carry out for a few good minutes, letting the overwhelming emotions bubble over in the fellow god. It would make backstabbing him even sweeter.

_Now, we begin._

Velora laced her lips with a thin layer of venom and pressed them against Loki's for the next kiss. The burning sensation made the god jump back in pain and shock. Loki stared at Velora in confusion, one hand coming up to his lips to survey the damage.

"What… what was that?" Loki quickly found himself trembling in pain. Chills overtook every nook and cranny of his being. He could have sworn it to be worse than the coldest of nights in Jotunheim.

"Consider it a little message from your precious Ejlonwe," sneered Velora as she got to her feet. She dusted herself off and glared Loki as he writhed in pain on the ground.

"Y-Y-You're not…?" Loki was cut off by his own violent coughing.

Velora knelt down, staring him in the eyes just long enough to deliver her message. "As if a soul as wicked as yours could ever conjure one from Valhalla? Ha! You are more akin to Hel."

"Wh-wh-who… a-a-are you?" Loki struggled to pull himself up but strength was leaving his body at a rapid pace.

"The one who you should kneel before above all else, oh powerful God of Mischief." She grabbed Loki by the collar of his armor and slung him over her shoulder like a rag doll. Making a display of her hostage, she walked into the palace and boasted before a couple guards. "Tell the great bastard Odin that Velora has returned. I suggest he ready his strongest warriors at once."

The guards quickly moved to lunge at Velora but she had vanished into thin air. They whipped their heads around wildly, looking every which way in hopes of finding where she had gone off to. They would soon come to realize that Velora was no longer in Asgard at all.

…

…

…

"Why the _hell _should we want his help?" snapped Stark. He should have known better to keep his cool around Banner.

Bruce merely took off his glasses and stared calmly at his fellow Avengers. "Think about this for a moment. If he brought Velora into existence again then theoretically shouldn't he know how to send her back?"

"My brother is a cleverly cautious one," offered Thor. "Perhaps he researched a counter spell should things have gone awry. I would not put something like this past him."

"See?" Banner rose from his seat. "I don't like him any more than the rest of you but right now he's our only hope."

No one had any argument, or rather any _decent _one. Tony Stark wanted nothing more than to destroy that Asgardian villain cell by cell. To ask for his help was the most repulsive idea he could think of, save for killing Leslie. If it was the only way – and everyone at the table knew this to be true – then it was a decision that would have to be made. Fast.

"Fine," commanded Fury. "We'll establish a temporary alliance with Loki upon his consent. Thor, is he still in Asgard?"

"When last I checked, yes."

"Good, then we'll need you to—"

"Sir?" Agent Hill's voice split the conversation in half.

"What is it, Hill?" Fury was not fond of being interrupted.

"You might want to get a look at what Communication's is sending us." The severity in her voice was unnerving.

At that moment, all the monitors in the bridge switched over to the feed Hill had been talking about. It was from a local New York news network. Leslie appeared to be standing on top of Lyrhon Incorporated's tower, Loki hanging limp from the grip of her hand. The wild look in her eyes was inhuman. Still clad in her Asgardian armor, she seemed more a threat than a friend despite the familiar face.

"Looks like she's bringing the party to us," muttered Stark as she rose from his seat. "We know where we have to be."

Everyone who still sat rose to join him in no time.

"Our first mission is to recover Loki," announced Steve. "Do not take out Leslie unless it is _absolutely _necessary."

"And even then, try to refrain," added Stark in a snippy tone.

…

…

…

"Before we do anything rash I'm gonna try talking some sense into her," stated Iron Man as he flew through the sky. He was zeroing in on the Lyrhon tower.

"Stark, Thor said that's pointless!" shouted Captain America into his communicator. "She doesn't have any of Leslie's memories. You're a stranger to her!"

True to form Stark was going to dance to his own tune. If he wanted to try this no one was stopping him. The sight of Leslie coming into view strengthened his stubborn resolve. He lowered himself down onto the building's roof and stared at the goddess through his mask.

"Leslie!" cried Stark through the voice system. "You're home!"

"Am I?" Velora smiled and dropped the motionless Loki on the ground. "Well, glad to be back! Miss me?"

_There's no way she's back. This is definitely an act_. Stark flew over next to Leslie and hovered just a bit above the ground. He held out one armored hand to her.

"More than you know, girl. What do you say – let's get out of here, huh?"

_Perfect, this guy's too easy. Society is more stupid than I could have hoped for._

Velora grinned and took Stark's hand. Iron Man promptly whipped her around and tossed her off the side of the building.

"Sorry bitch, you aren't my Starship," sneered Tony as he watched her tumble towards the ground. He quickly moved in to scoop up Loki and transport him back to SHIELD.

Velora smashed through the asphalt with such thunderous force that she left a crater in the ground. Not one to die from such a silly impact, she quickly peeled herself off the ground and glared those around her. She grabbed a nearby car and threw it at some of the people staring at her. It was enough to send everyone screaming and running in the opposite direction.

"Run, you fools!" she screamed in delight. "Run for your very lives!"

"Do me a favor and keep crazy occupied while we handle Loki on this end." Stark was nearing in on SHIELD's helicarrier with an unconscious Asgardian in tow. "This guy isn't waking up so it might take a minute."

"He's out cold?" asked Hawkeye as he aimed an arrow at Velora from a distance. "Tell me he's breathing at least. We need the jackass _alive_."

Stark gulped. "I'll let you know in a second." He lowered himself down onto the helicarrier and passed Loki's body off to some SHIELD agents.

"I've got this, guys." Banner's voice suddenly poured into their communications. "Tony, you're needed on the battlefield. Natasha and I will handle Loki and report anything on this end."

Stark didn't need to hear that twice. "You got it, man. Guys, I'm coming back to you."

Hawkeye released the explosive-tipped arrow and watched it sail straight towards Velora. The goddess not only caught it in mid air but flipped it into a patch of running pedestrians. It detonated in the screaming throng.

"You might wanna hurry up, Stark!" cried Hawkeye in despair. He winced as his arrow killed innocent people. "She's insane!"

Thor quickly flew into the scene and placed himself at talking distance from Velora.

"Stop this now!" he cried, Mjolnir in hand and ready to go. "Velora, you shall not harm the people of Midgard! They have no qualms with you."

"Oh, is this who I think it is?" Velora lit up in psychotic delight and chuckled. "The Mighty Thor Odinson has graced me with his presence! I believe your father knows I'm here as well."

"What have you done to my father?" snarled Thor in rage.

"Oh, nothing. Not yet anyhow." She smirked widely. "Just a little harmless threat. He should be scrambling warriors as we speak."

"You have been sent to Hel once! What makes you think it shall not happen again?"

"I know not of the previous Velora's exploits. All I know are my own ambitions." The Goddess of Chaos glided over to Thor and punched him square in the jaw. "Do me a favor and stay out of my way."

Thor went flying down the street a good distance from the blow. With a bellowing yell, he rose to his feet and spun Mjolnir. Storm clouds gathered overhead and the rumbles of thunder echoed throughout the city.

"Oh gosh, we're doing that now?" Velora rolled her eyes and concentrated. Her brown hair turned pale blonde and her green eyes went that steel blue The Avengers knew well. Her skin paled to a ghostly shade. "This body can match your magic, Odinson!"

"She's turned into Axia!" cried Hawkeye into his communicator. "This just got worse!"

"You're kidding! How'd she know about that?" Stark was nearing in on the scene.

"You do not own that body!" cried Thor as she sent a bolt of lightning straight through her being. "Relinquish it to Leslie at once!"

Velora dug her feet into the ground and let out a laugh once the spectacle was over. "I conduct electricity, you buffoon!" Wild sparks flew off of her every which way. "Not the smartest attack you could have made on an Axiom-rich being."

"You know of Leslie's abilities?" Thor glared the goddess down.

"When I poisoned that moronic brother of yours I took a sneak peek into his mind. Learned a few things in the process. Guess he was good for something after all." Leslie cackled and vanished from sight, reappearing directly behind Thor. "It was worth the price."

"What price is she talking about?" asked Stark as he finally arrived. He fired a few repulsor blasts at Velora in vein.

"She probably meant not killing him," chimed Bruce back at SHIELD. "I'm reading all of Loki's vitals. They're solid. I'm gonna try and stimulate his brain, see if I can't wake him up a bit."

"My brother lives?" Thor spun around and punched Velora into the ground. "I thought you killed him!"

The goddess lifted herself up and spun around. "I needed information first, you dolt."

"It was a trade off – she needed to keep him alive during the attack to get any memories out of his brain," clarified Bruce.

_Yeesh, look who's the master of Asgardian paranormal studies! Go Banner! _Stark grabbed Velora by the collar and lifted her off the ground. "What are you after?"

"Mayhem, frenzy, madness, excitement, fear, disorganization, terror! Take your pick! As long as it's chaotic." With a cheeky grin, Velora vanished out of Stark's hands and did not reappear.

"You got an eye on her?" asked Captain America who was playing lookout with Hawkeye. "I've got nothing from my POV."

"Same here," grumbled Hawkeye. "She's definitely gone."

"She could be anywhere she wills herself to be," confessed Thor. "We must start a search for her immediately."

"You got that, Nick?" asked Star into his communicator.

"Already on it." Fury was barking orders left and right at everyone working the bridge. Global scans were up and running, frantically searching the faces of everyone on the planet in hopes that one would match Leslie's data profile. "You guys should get back here for now. A jet's on the way."

The four Avengers on-site gathered to the center of the street, exchanging looks of sorrow and frustration. The jet could not arrive soon enough.

…

…

…

**Good god, I suck at writing action scenes. My sincerest apologies. Thank goodness at least part of the next chapter is gonna take place at SHIELD.**

**Until then! :) Ciao~**

P.S. – The story's wrapping up soon! According to my little timeline we've got only 3 or 4 chapters left _at best_. May end even sooner. Thanks for sticking with me for so long!


	19. Shifting Paradigms

With the rest of The Avengers outside of the lab in observation, Doctor Banner had stepped up to the task of trying to bring Loki into consciousness. The god had been strapped down to a board that held him upright at a slight incline. He was limp in the harnesses but his vitals still registered on all the monitors. The silence of the lab was only disrupted by the heart monitor's beeping, a singular note that reminded everyone that Loki _did _have a heart – at least in the medical sense.

Bruce dug about one of the drawers and produced a pen-shaped electrical tool. One poke from this would send a moderate amount of voltage through anyone's system.

"Alright sleepyhead, time to wake up," cooed Banner as he prodded Loki with the tool. He gave a small jolt of electricity into the Asgardian's rib cage.

"GYAAAH!" Loki jerked with a loud cry but found himself immobile. Not that he had jerked too hard anyway – he was still incredibly weak. The straps were only triple reinforced Velcro, nothing too serious. Banner had made that request himself in hopes the meager restraints would send the message that they wanted to establish trust with Loki.

"Are you with us?" asked Banner. He wiggled his fingers in a silly wave before Loki's face.

The Asgardian's tired eyes slowly began to bring the world into focus. The sight of Bruce was sobering. Out of all of The Avengers he possessed a small amount of genuine fear towards this one. He would never forget how he had been thrashed around so effortlessly by the behemoth. Even though he looked docile enough in his human form, he feared the rabid instability of the monster within.

"Where am I?" he muttered weakly. His voice was hardly a notch above whispers.

"You're at SHIELD with The Avengers," answered Bruce in as friendly a tone he could muster. "We're safe on the helicarrier. We got you away from her. From Velora."

Loki's breathing gradually became less laborious. "Why did you bother? Wouldn't my dead body have pleased you more?"

"We're not trying to start anything with you." Bruce fidgeted a little bit with his hands before he pressed on. "We, uh… were kind of hoping you would help us."

"Bah!" Loki managed a slight glare. "I would sooner die."

"That can be arranged," muttered Bruce just loud enough for Loki to hear.

The god gulped and looked away. "What could you possibly need me for?"

"Your little magic tricks have gotten out of hand. Thanks to your crazy girlfriend you were poisoned and pushed to the edge of death. Tony Stark was nice enough to bring you back here. I think we could try meeting halfway."

A long minute passed before Loki spoke. "… I'm listening."

"You used magic to bring Velora into Leslie's body, right?" The god nodded. "What are the odds you could reverse that and drag her out?"

"A counter spell?" Loki genuinely pondered the plausibility. "In theory there should be such a solution. Given enough time I could probably figure it out with ease." Then Loki quickly switched gears from cooperative to difficult. "Pray tell, why should I help you?"

"She's destroying everything out there." Bruce looked absolutely grim. "It's a disaster."

"And this concerns me how?" Loki rolled his eyes. "I have no care over the fate of your pathetic realm. Should it crumble, what consequence is it to me?"

Banner turned his back to Loki and folded his arms in struggle. He gave a defeated look to The Avengers who still observed him outside. Tony broke away from the pack and entered the lab as well.

"Alright, let's try this again," he growled at Loki. He hardly had the god's attention. "You _are_ going to help us. We'll grant you temporary immunity and let you go scot free _if _you hold up your end of the deal and give us our girl back."

"You're even less persuasive than the Doctor," scoffed an unimpressed Loki.

"Oh, really?" Stark leaned in and made chilling eye contact with the captive Asgardian. "How do you think Ejlonwe would feel about this?"

Loki's heart skipped a beat at the sound of her name.

"I don't know what you're talking about!" snapped Loki much too defensively. Even he knew his overreaction had given away his lie.

"She believed in good values. She was the Goddess of _Heart_." Stark glared Loki, trying to use his words to stab into his soul – if there was one. "Kindness, purity, laughter, charity – these were all things she lived for that you couldn't care less about. Do you really think she'd ever love you now?"

"Know your place, mortal!" hissed Loki. "You know nothing of what you speak!"

"I beg to differ, Rudolph." Stark crossed his arms, features still laden with rage. "Anyone with half a brain would know her ideals clash with yours. Leslie was _far _from perfect but she was more like Ejlonwe than that psychopath on the loose right now. Tell me you don't want her back. That you'd rather betray everything Ejlonwe stood for and let a demon in _her image _destroy the world. To have that monster besmirch Ejlonwe's name and legacy. For the history pages to blame her and ruin her name. For Leslie to _never _come home." Stark slammed one fist on the board Loki was strapped to. "TELL ME, RIGHT NOW!"

Loki was furious to be caught up in the mortal's words, however true they were. His damned emotions got the better of him. With deep pain in his voice, he finally consented.

"Fine, I'll work on that blasted counter spell! But I warn you now, reverse conjures are no easy task!" Loki's face had gone red but even he wasn't sure if it was from rage or embarrassment.

Stark undid one of the wrist straps to give Loki a free hand and then offered his own. "Welcome to the team."

Loki slapped his hand away. "I will not _shake _on it. And do not even begin to call me an Avenger or I will slit your throat while you sleep."

"Square deal," muttered Stark. He withdrew his hand and gave a firm nod to Loki. "Let's get to work, Rock of Ages."

…

…

…

Once Loki was set up with all of the materials he requested he went to work intensely. SHIELD pulled out all the stops with security, not one to make the "trust" agreement too naively. The Avengers were supposed to be giving him space but a handful of them found themselves waiting outside the lab's doors. Thor was amongst them, strangely nervous given his usual macho routine.

"What's eating you?" asked a wary Clint Barton.

_I promised not to reveal her predicament, but… _Thor was engaged in some serious mental warfare. Now that Velora was Axia for all intensive purposes, a new problem had surfaced. How much did she know exactly? In the brief amount of time she gave Loki that poisonous kiss she had absorbed glimpses of his memories. She had most likely seen Loki's battle against The Avengers during his attempted conquest. Bits and pieces of his time with Leslie surely filtered through too. _Does she know about the poison?_

"I promised Leslie I would never tell, but I feel her request is superseded by the situation." Thor folded his arms and tried to shake the grim look from his face. "I learned from Heimdall that the Axiom in Leslie's bloodstream is poisonous."

Clint and Stark narrowed their eyes in confusion. This was news to them.

"If she remains as Axia for too long she begins to succumb to Axiom poisoning. It poses significant limitations on her. She must take great care not to overexert herself at risk of dying." Thor stared at his feet. "I am not sure if Velora knows this fact."

"I doubt it since nobody _else _did," snapped Stark. He was taking the moment personally. How could Leslie not have told him something like this?

"Man of Iron, I urge you not to be upset with Leslie." Despite his good intentions Thor still felt a little guilty dropping her secret like that. "The poor girl was quite upset when she discovered Heimdall had told me of this. She wished nobody to know so that she would not be discriminated against in war. She wanted to fight valiantly hard as any other great warrior would."

"She was afraid of getting benched?" Clint shook his head in disapproval. "Sometimes I question that girl's priorities."

"I can't believe she didn't tell me that. I would've figured something out!" Stark tossed one hand into his thick hair and let out a puff of frustrated air. "I hope we get her back alive so I can kill her myself."

Thor and Clint stared at Stark incredulously.

"_Figure of speech_," he said pointedly at the accusing faces.

Clint rolled his eyes at Stark and turned his attention back to Thor. "Does Loki know about this yet? He'll need to work fast if he's gotta beat the clock on this poison."

Thor figured there was no use in lying about it. Even if he were to deny Loki's knowledge of this and then enter the lab to inform him, a simple "I was aware of that" from his brother would do just as much damage. Tony Stark was going to have to find out the hard way that Leslie _did _tell someone else. Thor had only overhead it from Heimdall after all. Leslie's only true confession was to Loki.

"My brother is already aware of this," admitted Thor.

Stark was livid. "How did he know? I didn't see you tell him anything."

"Leslie confessed this to him during his probation in your realm. He assisted her in researching possible cures as one of his deeds." Thor regretted the secondary confession as soon as it left his mouth. Perhaps that part should've stayed secret.

"Fuck this," snapped Stark as he threw his communicator on the ground. "She can have her boyfriend save her." The CEO stormed off before anyone could even think of what to tell him.

Thor gave a sorrowful look at Clint. Guess it was his turn to do the level-headed thinking.

"Relax, he'll calm down soon enough. He just has to go blow off some steam." Clint shrugged and gave a hopeful smile to the Asgardian. "There's no way he'd actually back out of this with her involved."

"I only hope you are right," added the not-as-optimistic Thor. "The temptation to ask my brother of his progress is great, yet we promised him distance."

"If you two had some good blood between you I'd say go for it but, well… yeah." Clint winced a little. "Pretty sure he'd talk to anyone else in this place before you, man."

"Shamefully I must agree." Thor reached out and grabbed Clint by the shoulders, shoving him towards the lab doors. "This is why _you _must ask him!"

"What, why me?"

But Clint was already shoved into the labs before he could squirm away. The doors shut loudly behind him. A slightly agitated Loki peered over his shoulder at the Avenger who had once been his mind slave.

"Fancy seeing you again," he said with a snarky tone.

Clint let that slide graciously. "Sorry to bug you but Thor kind of threw me in here."

Loki rolled his eyes. "I'm not surprised. I suppose the oaf wishes to know if I have made any headway." He went back to studying the SHIELD scans of the spell pages since the originals were back in Asgard.

"Yeah, but we all are to be honest. Your brother told us about the Axiom poisoning and I guess we're all anxious now." Clint folded his arms and shrugged his shoulders. "It's a shame she never told us about it before."

"Yes, well, her pride blinds her sometimes." Loki flipped through another set of pages and sighed. "I am almost positive I can do this. There is just one slight risk that I am not sure how to evade."

"Being…?"

"The poisoning is gradual. As it infects her bloodstream it weakens her progressively; muscles decay, bones fracture easily, so on and so forth." Loki turned around to make eye direct contact with Clint Barton for the first time. "We not only have to get to her before she's fatal. We have to reach her before she's _degraded_."

"Wait, so we've got even less time?" Clint ran one hand down his face in anxiety. "Great, this is getting better by the second."

"The counter conjure will rip her very essence of being apart, multiple times." Loki frowned slightly. "Long story short, she'll have to die repeatedly before she can live again. A degraded body will be in no shape to handle a spell like that. It shall kill her faster than the poisoning, and I can only assume more painfully as well."

Clint was at least glad to see that Loki looked more upset than excited at this information. It was the one silver lining in this storm. He had something of a conscience after all, at least when it came to Leslie.

"Then let's hope we find her soon. SHIELD's been running facial recognition scans from Leslie's profile since she disappeared."

"That won't be of any use," countered Loki. "Velora is master of shape shifting. The odds that you'll find her in Leslie's form are slim to none. I only assume she kept her appearance in tact when she arrived with me to stir you Avengers into action on a _personal _level."

"To cause chaos, of course." Clint grumbled. "Makes sense."

"You shall need a more efficient way of looking for her, something irrelevant to Leslie entirely." The God of Mischief was being remarkably helpful for someone in his position. Still, Clint wasn't going to question it. "Try to think of Velora instead."

Clint pinched the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger in thought. Clearly Loki knew the answer already but he wanted to see Hawkeye figure it out for himself.

_Think of Velora instead... think… Velora… Velora… Vel… OF COURSE!_

"Chaos!" exclaimed Clint a little too loudly. "Wherever there's a lot of unusual chaos we're bound to find her!"

Loki gave a slight satisfied smirk and nodded. Barton may not be his brainwashed follower anymore but he still took a little bit of pride in his abilities. At least for now, given the alliance.

Clint pressed into his communicator to relay the news. "Fury, have the bridge start scanning for outbreaks of non-pattern chaos! Velora might not even look like Leslie anymore. The facial recognition programming is a dead end!"

"You've gotta be kidding me, she's a _shape _shifter?" Fury rolled his eyes. These kinds of crazy topics were more run of the mill for the Director of SHIELD. He ordered everyone to change the scans accordingly. "Let's see if this does one better."

Clint nodded to Fury even though they were in completely different areas of the helicarrier. He then drew his gaze to Loki who seemed pretty much done with the task at hand.

"Thank you, Loki." He reached out his hand for a cordial shake. "Honestly, we wouldn't have any hope without you."

Unlike his treatment to Stark's shake, the god actually accepted this offer but returned a disturbing smirk instead. "Yes, but this problem would not exist if I hadn't created it."

"Yeah, well, can't do anything about the past." Clint drew his hand back and went to make an exit. "You can't get hung up on yesterday all the time. Especially not in this business. You'll drive yourself insane." Before disappearing completely he added one final line of wisdom. "Just live for today and dream of tomorrow. It's the best we can do for ourselves."

With that said, Clint left behind a very suddenly deep-in-thought Loki.

…

…

…

The Avengers all sat assembled at their usual table on the bridge, Loki the only out of place face amongst them. Fury was before the big screen again, this time looking a little more confident. There was an actual plan.

"We have good news and bad news," the Director stated bluntly. "The good news is Loki has managed to work up a counter spell that should do the trick and bring back Leslie. Part _one _of the bad news is that we still haven't found her."

"And part two?" asked Stark with attitude. He was still extremely put out of it from Thor's words earlier but at least he was back with his communicator on.

"Part _two _is that we're running out of time." Fury turned to the screen and pointed at what looked like a football play sketched out with X's and O's. "The rough plan we've been able to draft up is as follows. When we locate her it's important to contain her to a cleared area. We can't have pedestrians, buildings or much of anything else in the way. The spell needs to operate in an opening."

"Let's hope she's not in a city," muttered Natasha.

"Yes, let's." Fury was not amused by everyone's sudden attitudes. "As I was saying, containing her is going to require some boxing. She'll need to be surrounded. You'll all have to work as a team to shift her into a substantial zone for Loki to do his, uh… thing."

Loki decided to elaborate a little further. "This kind of spell is going to have a lot of discharge – stray concentrations of energy that are incredibly dangerous. The open space helps eliminate the risk of civilian casualties and collateral damage to the infrastructure."

"Since when do you care about our people?" Steve Rogers was incredibly skeptical of Loki.

The rebel Asgardian rolled his eyes. "Would you prefer I perform the spell in a crowd of starving orphaned children? I could arrange that as well."

"Obviously not!" snapped Steve.

Loki glared him coldly. "Then don't question my niceties, you ignorant propaganda tool."

Normally anyone in the room would have started shouting at Loki for throwing that slur at Captain America but it wasn't worth the risk of pissing him off. The outcast Asgardian was the only hope they had.

"We should be thankful he's trying to help us out so much," interjected Bruce. "Loki's obviously trying to think of what would be best for everyone. We'd instantly disagree with a plan that put others in danger and waste time fighting over an alternative. He wants Leslie back as much as we do. Let's cut him some slack."

How ironic The Hulk was today's voice of reason. Loki gave a thankful nod in Banner's direction for his input. It quelled the murmurs for now.

"We have to find her now," added Clint. "Any strategy that happens from here on out is totally dependent on where we find her."

With the creepiest timing, one of the monitor's on the bridge began to blink violently. The SHILED agent working that desk turned off the warning lights and examined the data that was beginning to flow in.

"Director, I think we've got her!" exclaimed the agent as he transferred the feed to the bridge's main system.

The video feed showed what looked like a deranged politician opening fire on a crowd of civilians at a presidential address in Washington, D.C. The man matched no profile of any known politician in the world, let alone America. He – or most likely, she – was creating absolute panic in the heart of the country.

"That fat, baling white guy is Leslie?" asked a doubted Clint.

"Unfortunately, yes," clarified Fury. "We can say that with ninety-five percent certainty. Need I say more?"

And he did not. The Avengers and Loki were already gone from the table, some of the chairs still swiveling around in emptiness. It was time for the final assembly.

…

…

…

**We're building up to the conclusion here! Thanks for sticking with me through all of this, guys. I'm so glad this story's attracted the following it has! If you wouldn't mind, please leave a little review for me? :) The button's right down there! You don't need to be registered or logged in at all!**

**Until the next update, ciao for now~**


	20. From Whence You Came

_**Quick Note**_

**Thanks a bunch for all the new alerts/faves! I can't believe they're still growing. Just a note to anyone who cares – after this is over I'll be doing a series of shorter pieces (primarily one-shots). So if you really like this it might be worth adding me to your author alerts in general? :) Just a suggestion!**

**The majority of these pieces would involve the characters we all know and love, by the way! Though I'll probably throw Leslie into one or two post-MMM (Mischief, Midgard & Madness) one-shots… the urge will overwhelm me, let's be real here. I've grown attached to her.**

**Anyway – thank you to those who have reviewed so far! It might seem silly but those literally make my day, haha. It's proof that I'm not doing this just for myself. Others really do care too. The compliments have been so wonderful!**

**Love you all~!**

**Now, onto chapter TWENTY! (Oh my god, how did it get this far?)**

…

…

…

Helicopters swarmed the skies of Washington D.C., some with news cameras and others with guns. Either way, everything was trained on Velora. She still appeared as the obese and balding politician from SHIELD's bridge cams. The "man" casually lobbed balls of concentrated electricity into the throngs of citizens. Secret Service was beside themselves when their bullets failed to make an impact.

"How is this possible?" snapped one of the president's agents. "He's literally immune to gunfire!"

"What if he's an extraterrestrial?" suggested another, still unloading his pistol into the unwavering man. "Clearly he's not from _our _planet."

Velora stopped chucking Axiom bombs into the crowd just long enough to greet the Secret Service agents with a wicked grin. "You got _that _right, baby."

Before the agents could even respond to that, Velora was knocked flat on her ass by one of Iron Man's repulsor blasts. Her impact with the ground broke her shape shifting spell. The image of the politician melted away to reveal what looked like Leslie as Axia, a pale blonde beauty with steely eyes that could see through your soul. Except she was too perfect, too beautiful, inhumanly sculpted like a doll in a china shop.

"You'll pay for that!" she snapped as she got to her feet.

It was almost ironic to see her clad in her usual black get-up with the Stark Industries logo running down her backside. Leslie or not, she still had access Axia's upgraded armor. For the first time, Stark regretting doing Leslie that favor.

"Come on, crazy. Let's dance." Iron Man landed on the stage where Velora stood poised and ready to lunge. "They say it takes two to tango."

Velora screamed and lunged onto Iron Man with a serious grip. She dented some of the armor and kicked him square in the chestplate. The strength of her assault sent him barreling backwards to the edge of the stage.

"You suck at dancing," replied Velora with a cocky smile.

"Sorry, let me try that again." Stark sent a good repulsor blast her way that sent her careening into the stage with force. He had to relay this news into the communicator privately so he made sure his external coms were turned off. "Guys, she's susceptible to attacks that did _nothing _before. Bullets are pointless but high-grade assaults aren't. She's definitely weaker."

"Does she look like she's gonna pass out soon?" asked Hawkeye from a nearby rooftop. He had his bow and arrow trained on Leslie's figure.

"No, not yet, but she's probably gonna get there soon." Stark dodged as Velora threw a series of violent sparks his way. "She's really going full throttle with the Axiom."

"We're gonna need to box her in _now_," ordered Captain America. "Hurry up with your role as bait and get her to Lafayette Park."

"Yeah, _working_ on it."

Stark needed to find a way to make her follow him. They were in front of the White House and Lafayette Park was right next door. If he were to fly there now though Velora would simply turn her attention back to the panicking citizens. Simply put, Stark had to figure out a way to piss her off and make it personal.

He had _just _the trick.

"Hey, oh mighty Goddess of Chaos!" Stark flew over to her and hovered just out of punching distance. "You got a second?"

Velora narrowed her eyes and sneered a quick "_What?"_ before Stark unleashed his master plan. He quickly flipped up the gold faceplate of his helmet to reveal the man within and gave Velora a particularly disturbing kiss. The livid goddess was sure she felt his pathetic mortal tongue glide against hers.

"Come and get me," he winked before flipping down the faceplate again and blasting off.

"You dare think you are worthy of _me_?" screamed Velora as she put the Stark tech to good use and flew after him.

It was a dangerous play, however. Just as Stark's repulsors fed off his arc reactor, Tony had outfitted Leslie's upgrades to feed off of the Axiom in her bloodstream. Had he known how fatal his upgrades were he never would have designed them that way.

By the time they both grounded themselves in a clearing in Lafayette Park, Velora looked absolutely miserable. Purple bruises under her eyes made it look like she hadn't slept in days. Her breathing was labored and her skin even more pale than before. Her blonde hair looked so brittle that brushing it might pull it out.

"You… you are not worthy… of me…" she breathed out in between gasps for oxygen. The irritation on her face was very clear. She truly had no idea about the poisoning. It pained her deeply not knowing what was weakening her so much.

Hawkeye had repositioned himself on top of the White House in clear view of Velora. Captain America emerged from behind a few trees and came into the clearing directly opposite of Iron Man. Black Widow completed the third point in the formation as she came out of seemingly nowhere. Thor took care of the fourth and final spot, completing the square that would box Velora in once and for all.

"You set me up!" she growled while dropping to her knees. "How dare you trick me!"

"You really need a reality check," quipped Natasha. "The world doesn't revolve around you."

At that moment, the God of Mischief made his critical appearance. He stood fully clad in his Asgardian gear including the intimidating helmet. His cold eyes bore into Velora with acidity.

"You've defeated yourself," he sneered at her. "How pathetic."

Velora let out another bone chilling scream and reached with her hands to grab at the sorcerer. She was absolutely degraded and merely fell on her face in the grass. Gentle sobbing became to emanate from her weakening corpse.

"Why is this happening to me?" she groaned in a depressing tone. "What have you done to me?"

"You have done this to yourself," retorted Loki. "You are solely to blame." Spinning around to face both Iron Man and Thor, he shouted, "NOW!"

Instantly, The Avengers scattered.

Iron Man, Thor and Captain America all congregated at the edge of the park. The sight of Loki and Velora was distant but visible through holes in the forest. Natasha twisted and flipped her way up to join Hawkeye atop the White House. It was the moment they had all been waiting for. With Leslie's body so weak, no one dared speak their fears out loud. The odds that she would survive the spell were not promising at all.

"What is this madness?" Velora pounded her fists on the ground in a tantrum. "What are you doing to me?"

Loki backed up a significant distance and began to recite his counter conjure in his native Asgardian. The words were so eloquently strung together in a beautiful dance that it sounded more like poetry than magic. Erratic columns of pure concentrated energy began to emerge in a circle around Velora. The goddess had just enough time to look at Loki with horror filled eyes before the first column twisted and penetrated her body.

The horrific scene played out as it did during the first spell. Round after round of piercing energy shot through her with such violent force that it was a miracle she did not rip in half. Her body jerked and twisted about. The loud crackling noises were not accompanied by any screams of pain or agony. Loki continued with the cantering anyway though the lack of screams bothered him deeply. He did not wish for suffering but merely a sign that Leslie was alive in there somewhere.

Velora's essence was stripped from her being in a violent rip. Her image dissipated like a smoky vapor into thin air. One by one the columns of energy receded into nothingness until the scene was calm once more. Leslie lay motionless in the grass, face down, skin still pale as snow and hair as blonde as ever.

"Leslie!" screamed Loki as he ran over to her. He quickly knelt down beside her and turned her over. He propped her upper body against his chest and ran his fingers about her neck checking for a pulse. "Please, _please _don't leave me."

Within seconds all of The Avengers – save for Bruce who was standing by at SHIELD – were around Loki and Leslie in an emotional scene.

"I feel nothing!" Loki cried, his voice crackling a bit in strain. "Her heart… it does not beat." He refused, absolutely _refused_, to cry in front of these people. It took a good amount of strength to hold back the tears. "Leslie, what have I done to you?" he whispered sadly. A singular tear escaped his eyes and fell onto the lifeless woman's cheek. _Damn these emotions!_

"Hold on, lay her flat on the ground!" commanded Stark. Loki instantly complied without question, letting Iron Man kneel down next to Leslie's body.

He placed one hand over her heart and sent very downgraded charges from his arc reactor through her body. He hoped the conductive powers of the Axiom would carry the heart-starting pulses through her system fast enough.

One shock, two shocks, three shocks, four…

Thor covered his gaping mouth with his hand and closed his eyes. Steve Rogers looked down at his feet and removed his mask in mourning. Hawkeye and Natasha gulped in unison while Clint bit his bottom lip. Loki was struggling even harder to hold back hysterics.

Five shocks, six shocks, seven…

"Give it up, Tony," stated a sobered Steve from behind. "You have to let it go."

"Shut up!" he snapped as he continued. "Just shut up!"

Eight shocks, nine shocks, ten…

Like a ripple of hope in the midst of the impromptu funeral, Leslie's lips parted and a soft cough came out. Her chest expanded as she took in the much needed air. Tony and Loki both lost it in front of everyone.

"Starship!" exclaimed Stark betwixt tears as he tried to support her head. "Is that you?"

Leslie gave a very weak nod and smiled ever so faintly. "Yeah, it's me," she whispered.

Loki knelt down beside her and helped her lean up. "We need to get her to a hospital," he stated in a disturbingly concerned tone. His face was wet with tears of joy.

Stark nodded and got to his feet, radioing back to SHIELD. "We got her back, guys. Banner, ready the medical unit. She's gonna need some serious care. The poisoning's bad."

"I'm already on it," replied Bruce. "Fury's got a jet two minutes out coming right for you."

"Got it, thanks." Stark turned to look at Leslie again. The weak creature had finally opened her eyes and was smiling up at Loki.

"You saved me," she stated in an almost inaudible volume.

"If it weren't for my stupidity you wouldn't have needed saving." Loki frowned and looked away in shame. "Please, thank me for nothing. I deserve not a word of it."

The group as a whole was shocked to see the Asgardian acting this way. Perhaps they had all judged him a bit too rashly during his probation last month. True, he had gotten himself caught up in trying to relive a past love through poor little Leslie… but even still, it was clear that he cared for her and her alone now. At last, Loki loved _her_.

"Let me tell you something," she whispered back, pulling his face close to hers so he could hear. "I know I reacted poorly over this Ejlonwe stuff… and I had every right to. But… I see where you're coming from." She took in a deep breath and exhaled. "If I looked into your eyes and saw Darren… oh, the temptation I would face. To know… if it meant something more… if it were him… if it could ever be… and if I could try to bring him back?" Leslie smiled and shook her head slightly. "It's only human that we feel this way."

"Human…?" Loki blushed and stared into her eyes awkwardly. "Me, of all people?"

"Especially you." She brought one hand to his soft face and smiled. "You have felt so much pain in your life that you suffer like no other. … You eat away at yourself. … You're more human than most people I know. … It's _alright_."

Loki whimpered and pulled Leslie in for an embrace while they sat in the grass, burying his face in her shoulder and brittle blonde hair. He hoped no one could hear his sobs.

"Shhhh, it's alright." Leslie smiled and leaned her head on his. "It'll be okay."

Thor did not want to disrupt the heart-to-heart between the mortal and his brother but a pressing concern had been caught on his lips for some time.

"Leslie, should you not change back now?" Thor frowned. "You are still Axia. The poisoning is severe, you shall only make it worse."

"I don't have enough energy to change back," she confessed in a sad whisper. "It takes a great deal to shift around my DNA." The frown on her face was morbid. "I'm afraid I'm stuck like this."

Loki pulled his face away from Leslie's and stared at her intently. "This will not do."

"Can it be, I dunno… paused or something?" asked Hawkeye, his arms crossed.

"Paused, that's it!" Stark tapped Loki on the shoulder. "If you don't mind…?"

"Oh, right. Sorry." Loki relinquished Leslie and stepped back to join the others in the circle.

Stark sat down next to Leslie and held one Iron Man suited hand up. The index finger tip flipped up and out came a little tool the size of a sewing needle. Leslie tilted her head and stared at him in tired confusion.

"I'm going to 'pause' your Axiom with a little reverse polarity. It'll hurt a bit," he warned with a frown. "And you're gonna pass out. But it'll give us enough time to get you back to SHIELD at least. We can hook you up better there."

Leslie nodded and smiled. "Do what you must."

With a quick jolt to her system from the needle tool, the Axiom was suspended within her blood. It would only hold for a short while – enough time to get her back to SHIELD and attached to machines that could continue the process from there. Leslie fell limp in his arms but breathed gently, still alive.

At that moment a large object in the sky blocked the sun before landing in the field next to the group. It was unmistakably their ride back to SHIELD. Nick Fury leaned against the entryway with an authoritative smile on his face.

"Good work, Avengers. Let's bring her home."

…

…

…

**Confession time – I think I cried a little while writing this chapter. LOL.**

**Please give the review button some love down there! Look at it all shiny and sexy and fabulous~ Don't you wanna touch it? ;) Ohhh yes, yes you do.**

… **I shouldn't be allowed to talk sometimes.**


	21. The Awakening

_**Quick Note**_

**Just a heads up – this chapter's probably going to bounce around a lot because it focuses on a lot of aspects and characters! Just warning you now in case it gets jumpy all of a sudden. I at least gave it a solid start, haha.**

**Also, OMG at the reviews. You people are too much! I love you all! I wish I could private message the anonymous reviewers back, I'd def send you personal thank yous if it were possible. :)**

**This chapter and the following chapter will be THE END! I will try to get the final one up within 24 hours of this. Happy reading~**

…

…

…

It was tough to look at Leslie the way she was now – laying pale and weak in a hospital bed, strapped into half a dozen machines just to stay alive. Loki regretted walking down to the medical wing the moment his eyes took in the sad sight. Despite how gracious Leslie had been about the whole ordeal, what he said before was still true. It was Loki's fault she was in this condition in the first place. _Everyone _knew that.

His sorrowful eyes scanned the length of her. He was certain she looked cold – a rather trivial problem given that she was oblivious to the world around her. Yet this bothered the Asgardian profoundly. He wished for nothing more than to walk inside, give her some extra blankets and pour his heart out into a loving apology.

_What has she done to me? _He sighed and rested his forehead against the window, his gaze mindlessly following the line of the heart monitor. _And what have I done to her? _He furrowed his brow and lost himself in thought_._ It mostly consisted of beating himself up for hurting Leslie and being so selfish, then scoffing at himself for being so weak.

He was pulled out of his thoughts only when Clint Barton walked by, his words snapping the God of Mischief back to reality.

"Hey man, you okay?"

Loki picked his head up and gave a lazy glance Barton's way. _He cares how I feel? Strange. _But it wasn't as cryptic as Loki thought. The way the sorcerer had broken down in front of everyone in Lafayette Park had left a lasting impression on the team. First, Loki _did _care about others, or at least Leslie Leonards, which was a start. And second, she had changed him and opened his heart up significantly in return. He was easier to talk to, more cooperative, and on a good day he wasn't half bad company around SHILED. He was still a mischief causing wretch on the surface but his core was more sympathetic now. More forgiving people like Bruce Banner and Clint Barton had taken well to having him around.

"I'm not exactly sure." Loki tore himself away from the window and turned his back on Leslie. "I have a hard time with all of this knowing I that put her there."

"At least she's alive," offered a rather optimistic Clint. "I know you feel guilty and technically you _did_ put her there, but try to think about the positives instead."

Loki quirked a brow at this notion. He failed to find any positives.

Clint elaborated further. "Think of it this way. You exposed her weakness. No one knew about the Axiom poisoning but thanks to you Stark and Banner are working around the clock for a cure. We're pretty optimistic they can find something."

Loki merely dropped his gaze to the floor.

Clint sighed. "She'd still be fighting death without you."

"Yes… I suppose so." The god returned his gaze to Barton but still looked rather miserable. "I hope they can figure something out for her. At least some kind of treatment that ebbs the symptomology. The poor thing has so many machines running into her. It would be nice for her to get off some of them and open her eyes again. … I do quite love her eyes."

_Whoa, is he still crushing on Leslie? No way_. Clint had to test this out a bit. "Her eyes, huh? What color are they again?"

"Only the richest green I have ever seen," he answered with a slight smile. "As crystalline and sparkling as your earthen emeralds. Oh, to see them once more." He was back to frowning, his hands covering his face in embarrassment.

Clint had to crack a smile. "Aw, you _like _her, don't you?"

Loki dropped his hands, blushed a little and broke eye contact once more. "Is that such a big deal?"

"To people on this planet? Yeah, usually." Clint smirked. "It's kind of funny you'd end up so attached to a 'pathetic mortal,' y'know?"

"Yes, well… perhaps I have misjudged your kind." Loki gave a small glance over his shoulder at Leslie through the window. "At least some of you are not as pathetic as I thought."

"You should talk to her when we get her waking up again. Maybe she'll go on a date with you." Clint was grinning from ear to ear. He was having a blast with the subject.

Loki merely scoffed. "Last I checked, Tony Stark was courting her. To step in on that is wildly inappropriate, is it not?"

"Oh yeah, that's right!" Clint had genuinely forgotten. "Well, if it makes you feel any better he has a pretty crappy track record with relationships. Give it like six months, come back and visit. Leslie might be single again." He wiggled his eye brows in a perverted gesture.

The God of Mischief blushed deeply. "Oh, I couldn't. Besides… I don't deserve her." He shrugged a little and folded his hands behind his back. "I could never live alongside her. I would impede her ambitions and dreams. She wishes to help the world, I wish to rule it."

"You can't really still be hung up on that after everything, can you?" Clint frowned a little. Loki found it surprising Clint was disappointed.

"Yes and no. It's rather complicated." Loki twiddled his thumbs behind his back. "Leslie…" He turned around and stared at her briefly once more. "Leslie gave me a chance."

Clint was confused now. "A chance at what?"

Loki's forlorn eyes met Agent Barton's confused ones. "… at _acceptance_."

The Avenger's eyes grew wide in shock while Loki's face went red as all hell. Without another word, the god turned and walked briskly down the hall in the opposite direction Clint had to go in. He had poured enough of his heart out to a stranger for one day. Had Leslie really melted him down this much? _I just blathered like an oaf to Barton! _He was having a hard time forgiving himself for being so pathetic in front of others.

Clint merely watched Loki dart off in sympathetic confusion before going his own way into the cafeteria. Suddenly lunch wasn't so important to him. He would have turned and left if it weren't for the sight of Banner and Thor waving him over from a table. Clint sighed, gathered a quick plate together and joined them sullenly.

"You look happy," quipped Banner sarcastically as he nibbled on a carrot stick.

"It's your damn brother, man," he muttered with a gesture at Thor. "I can't get a read on this guy to save my life. I don't know whether I should hate him or hug him."

"My brother possesses a fairly complex mind," replied Thor. "It seems Leslie has only furthered that complexity's design. He has been hard for me to figure out as well."

"I wouldn't recommend hugging him," answered Banner. "I don't think he's ready for that. Leslie hugged him yesterday and he burst into tears."

Thor shook his head at the memory. "What a painful sight that was."

Clint was desperate to change the subject. He had been brainwashed and subjugated by Loki, turned into a personal slave, betrayed those he loved, all because of this monster. The urge to be so nice to him was frustrating, yet he couldn't help it. It was too easy. Had Leslie really done something to him after all?

"Speaking of Leslie, how's that research coming?" Clint took a sip of his soda.

Banner shrugged. "We're making progress but not where we hoped to. Bringing her levels down to normal and staving off the side effects isn't rocket science. The _cure _is."

"So you can get her back on her feet but the chemical's still gonna be a problem?" Clint frowned. He had hoped they would discover a magical cure for her overnight but he had to admit how ridiculously optimistic that was.

"Yeah, it'll make things like they were before. She'll go back to normal but being Axia for too long will still poison her. Finding a cure for that issue is really going to take some time." Banner shook his head in frustration. "Stark and I have a whole team scrambling to find something we might be missing."

"How close is this temporary treatment to completion?" asked Thor.

"We'll probably be able to wake her up tonight." Banner smiled a little at this. "At least we can get her back into the world again."

"This is great news!" Thor beamed. "Someone should inform my brother."

"We'll tell everyone when we're sure it's happening. I said _probably _tonight." Bruce smiled and got up from the table with his tray. "I better get back to work if we wanna make that deadline."

"Good luck, man." Clint gave a casual salute to the Doctor as he left the cafeteria.

The two remaining Avengers sat in silence for a few moments before parting ways themselves. Many assumptions had been called into question throughout the past twenty four hours. It was becoming quite a lot to absorb.

…

…

…

It was around ten at night when it finally happened. Tony Stark flipped through a series of windows on his computer, caught deep in concentration. He snapped his fingers and spun a few diagrams around before a cheeky smile grew on his face. Bruce was beginning to know that smile well; it meant success.

"We're golden," he stated contently as he rose from his seat and grabbed a few instruments off the main table. "That isotope was a bitch to stabilize. I mean, seriously, _that _electron configuration of all kinds? Get real. Wrustleman must have hired drooling monkeys in his labs when they made Leslie's cocktail."

Banner laughed and shook his head. "Guess we're ready to wake her up?"

Stark nodded and grabbed a notebook from his workstation. "Let's get her into the OR."

Banner pressed on his communicator and relayed the message. "We need the operation room ready. We're good to go. Initiate Operation: Sleeping Beauty." He rolled his eyes at that last part. "Stark insisted we call it that."

Within minutes a couple SHILED agents has Leslie transported into the OR. Stark and Bruce, the only two knowledgeable enough with the solution to be the surgeons, were hard at work on her for a couple hours. It dragged on like an eternity for everyone involved. Banner was sweating bullets trying to keep himself calm while doing something so risky. As with any surgery there were always risks. One wrong move, one wrong cut, one wrong drop of medicine and things could go from great to nightmarish in an instant. The stress of the situation wasn't boding well for the 'other guy' after a while.

"Banner, get out of here. I can finish it up." Stark was not about to let Banner Hulk out in the medical wing. Without any protest, the Doctor left quickly and silently. Stark was now flying solo.

It was nearly one in the morning before Stark finished. Sweaty and strung out, the CEO collapsed to his knees at Leslie's beside and rested his head on her sheets. He took in air slowly and carefully, trying his best to bring his heart rate down a little bit. For someone who never went to medical school he considered this quite the personal success.

"Recovery," he muttered into his communicator. "Get her into recovery."

A couple agents came in and whisked her into the recovery wing in no time, leaving a cracked out but happy Tony Stark kneeling in the OR. He smiled to himself and rose to his feet. It would take a little bit for Leslie to finally come to. Figuring that he deserved a break anyway, Stark decided on a hot shower, fresh clothes and some top shelf whiskey to celebrate. He left for his room on the carrier with a giddy glide to his step.

…

…

…

"We've got a lot of shit to cover up," muttered Fury as he channel surfed through news networks in his office.

Every network was streaming the clips of "Leslie" wreaking havoc in New York and the Capital. They all made gross assumptions that were far from the truth. Some speculated that Leslie was mentally unstable and merged her company with Stark's strictly so she could go rogue. Others suggested that she had been a sleeper cell from a foreign or alien government brought here to disrupt the peace.

Fury rolled his one visible eye at the nonsense. He would have to get the Public Relations team on this garbage pronto if Leslie was to ever step outside again.

…

…

…

The time was creeping up on two in the morning. The world was blurry and bent, a mix of watered down colors smeared on a board. It took a couple minutes of intense blinking and eye rubbing to bring some semblance of reality into view. Leslie observed the white room around her and looked down at her hands. The lightly tanned skin was refreshing to see.

"No way," she whispered aloud. Her voice was slow and slurry from just having finally woken up. Reaching over to grab a lock of her hair, she held it in front of her face and grinned widely. It was its usual chestnut brown. "I'm back."

…

…

…

Loki Laufeyson had spent the entire day in isolation. SHIELD was kind enough to provide him with his own quarters on the carrier as dismal as they were. A pale gray undecorated room with a simplistic desk and bed but no windows made for a miserable environment. _Not like I have much I would wish to decorate with anyway_, he had thought sadly to himself before flopping onto the bed. Most of his day consisted of attempting to sleep or forget about Leslie, neither of which really worked out for him.

The Asgardian lay on his stomach, twiddling his thumbs as he thought to himself about everything. What was going to happen now? He heard the relay over the com about Leslie getting out of surgery. That had his mind going six ways from Sunday.

His rendition of how things would play out was rather depressing. Leslie would wake up and run into Tony Stark's arms, wrapping herself around him in some sort of Midgardian sensual embrace of love. They would giggle and be disgustingly cute with one another while Loki waited his turn to get in a hello. She would eventually get around to addressing Loki but her words would be the scathing truth.

"_Thanks for nearly killing me, asshole. You have the worst way of trying to win a girl over. Go back to your stupid planet and ruin some lives elsewhere. You've done enough here for one lifetime."_

His mental depiction of Leslie's voice was harsh, venom laden, and cold. She would conclude these words by first turning her back to Loki, and then proceed to make out with Stark right in front of him. The whole setup had him afraid to actually see her at all.

A light knock at his door pulled Loki out of his self-hating thoughts. He was surprised to get any sort of visitor at all. Who would ever want to go out of their way to talk to him?

"What?" he spat out coldly.

"You wanna open the door?" asked a familiar voice from outside. It was Steve Rogers.

Loki gave a confused scowl at his door. What did the Captain want with him? Clint and Bruce had been nicer to the Asgardian recently but not once had Steve ever tried to talk to him. He was not fond of the man at all.

Even still, he got up to open the door. God forbid he had some important news about Leslie – Loki wouldn't risk missing that.

"Can I help you?" he asked sarcastically.

Rogers scratched the back of his head nervously but kept his cool blue eyes on the God of Mischief. "Doctor Banner wanted me to come get you. He said you two should probably talk before you go see Leslie tonight."

Loki quirked a brow at the message. "Did he happen to say why?"

"No, he kinda kept it brief." Steve shrugged. "I can walk you over to the lab if you want."

There was slight hesitation in his tone. "… alright then."

The two began trekking towards the labs in an awkward silence. It was a while before they passed a series of windows that looked into the outside world. It was pitch black and raining, absolutely dismal. The Asgardian silently hoped that the weather was not some kind of ominous foreshadowing for how this evening would progress. Steve was a little put off by his grim expression.

"Not a fan of the rain?" asked Steve in an attempt to make small talk.

"Hm?" Loki glanced away from the windows and gave the man his attention. "I have no ill will towards the rain in your world. It's just a bother in Asgard if you wish to travel. We ride on horseback, not in cars."

Rogers was actually intrigued by this. "Horses? Wow, that's actually pretty neat." He was amused that someone actually had more retro customs than him for a change.

Loki was doubtful. "Do you really think so?"

"Yeah, it's very… classic." Steve was proud to be able to use the word in his own context. "What do you guys do for fun there?"

"Oh, stupid things." The Asgardian rolled his eyes. "We go hunting and feast after, dance to music, shop in the markets, craft weaponry, wage glorious battles and compete for the best war stories... rubbish like that."

"I think it sounds fun," chimed Rogers. "Did you do any of that with Leslie when she visited there?"

This finally got the god to smile a bit. "Yes, we did enjoy ourselves for a short while. I took her shopping, she forced me to dance, I customized quality armor for her, and she boasted at a feast about her own conquests. It was… rather fun."

"You should take her hunting when she's got her strength back," suggested Rogers. "I don't know if she told you but she's a pretty skilled marksman. She rarely uses guns in battle but she likes hunting for animals. She took me out deer hunting once. She's always humane and eats whatever she kills so it's not just a sport for her."

Loki was surprised to learn this about the woman. "Despite all that I have seen her do, I have a hard time picturing her stalking about the woods for prey."

"Well when you put it like that…" Steve had to laugh. "It's not as barbaric as you think. Then again, I don't know how hunting in Asgard works at all. I'm sure she'd love to learn."

"It's no matter," shrugged Loki. "Hunting is not my forte. I was never particularly good at it. That's more Thor's domain." The look of disdain on his face was almost comical.

"Not to be biased here but I think she'd much rather go hunting with you anyway." Steve offered an encouraging smile to the god. "She cares about you a lot, you know."

The two had finally reached the lab where Doctor Banner was muddling about. Steve opened the door for Loki, always the chivalrous one. The god thanked him for the gesture and stepped inside.

"I'll see you around," said Rogers before heading down the hall they had just come from. _Jeez, Clint was right. He really does grow on you. How does that even happen?_

Bruce Banner was hard at work on his laptop, busy typing up notes from the temporary treatment studies. The sound of the lab door closing behind Loki made him look up at last. With a calm, friendly smile, Banner got up from his workstation and walked over to greet his guest.

"The Captain said you requested my presence?"

"Yeah, I wanted to talk to you before you uh… y'know, go to see Leslie." Bruce twisted his hands about ever so slightly, a nervous tick of his. "You okay with that?"

The Asgardian shrugged passively. "I suppose so. What's this about exactly?"

"It's about… y'know…" Banner struggled with the topic a bit. "You know how you like her and everything? Some might call it love?"

Loki blushed and rolled his eyes. Of course they had to talk about this. The god began thinking of a list of a thousand and one other things he'd rather do. Banner was best friends with Stark ever since the first Avengers assembly. Loki braced himself to be bombarded with some kind of rant about how he should back off Leslie and let Tony court her without trouble.

"I just wanted to ask you how you felt about everything," asked Banner.

Loki was shocked by this. _He cares about what I feel? _Squinting his eyes in slight confusion, the Asgardian folded his arms and knitted his brow. "I am not quite sure how I should feel."

"I'm not talking about how you _should_ feel. Forget standards." Bruce was really surprising Loki with all of this. "How do you feel right _now_?"

It took a moment for him to formulate an accurate answer. He paced about and eventually took a seat on top of a nearby table. Banner was next to him awaiting his words.

"I believe…" he started slowly, "… that I love this woman." He paused and tried to keep himself from going red. "I love her for who she is. Not because she reminds me of anyone or because of superficial attributes like appearances. … I love her because she's Leslie."

Bruce nodded and let him continue.

"She's… so real, so flawed and yet not. She's weak and strong at the same time. Within her small frame is all this personality just waiting to be explored." He seemed to perk up a bit and smile with his words. "She listens and accepts easily, always trying to find a silver lining in the darkest of storms. She has this way of just getting inside your heart and digging around for answers to why you might hurt or be in pain. Why are you angry? Why are you crying? What makes you hate the world?"

He got up from the table and began to animate his words with gesticulations. "She wants to know not out of nosy curiosity but rather out of care and compassion. Once she knows _why_ you're hurting she tries to make it _stop_. She offers friendship, a smile, a bed to sleep in and a hand to hold." His eyes were growing wet as he went on. "I feel like she truly understands me and accepts who I am despite everything I have done. She believes I can change, not into a brainwashed servant for some army for good, but rather… just into someone who's happy for once."

His teary eyes met Bruce's gaze. "I love her because she loves me."

Banner nodded and took of his glasses, cleaning the lenses with the edge of his tee shirt. He put them back on and took a deep breath before bringing up the next subject.

"What do you think you'll do about this?" he asked very honestly.

Loki shook his head and shrugged. "I haven't the slightest clue. What do people in your realm do when they feel such things about someone?"

It was Bruce's turn to sit down on the table. "People do all sorts of things. Sometimes they ask the person out on a date. Or maybe they'll buy them a gift and surprise them with it. They might flirt or drop hints and get signals from the person in return to see if the feelings are mutual. It all depends on who you are and what you feel is right."

Loki frowned. "I am quite conflicted. I want to do everything."

Banner laughed at that. "Well, yeah, that might be a bit over the top. You know what approach I think would be perfect for you?" Loki stared, listening for dear life. "Just tell her honestly how you feel."

"That's it?" The Asgardian was baffled. "How simplistic."

"Life's only as complicated as we make it." Banner shrugged and smiled at the god. "I'll walk you over to the recovery wing."

The two exchanged grins and left the lab peacefully. The walk was completely silent from start to finish but it was not awkward in the slightest. There seemed to be a silent agreement of a possible friendship between Loki and Banner. Perhaps on Banner's end it was a silent apology for Hulking out on him so hard in the Stark Tower. Perhaps on Loki's end it was a silent apology for trying to take over the world in the first place. Or perhaps it was a lot less complex than that. They might have just been two men trying to get along in a crazy, hectic world.

Once they reached Leslie's room in the recovery wing, the happiness melted away. Bruce and Loki stared through the window at the sight that played out before them. Tony Stark was the first to be there for her when she woke up. He and Leslie were laughing about something but Loki and Bruce weren't sure what it was since the thick glass and walls blocked out any sound.

Leslie was sitting up and smiling at the man with the sweetest look in her eyes. Tony leaned over to give her a kiss and run a hand through her soft, healthy hair. They smiled at each other and began talking again.

"Doctor…" Loki's voice broke the silence in the hallway. "What is the custom here when the one you love is with someone else?"

Bruce frowned and tried to play it softly. This was why he wanted to be with Loki, for emotional support when the realization came. Leslie had been so adamant about not wanting Loki to be alone.

"It depends." Bruce continued slowly. "If she's with a jerk who doesn't treat her right then intervening is alright. You get her out of a bad relationship and show her what she's really worth."

Loki frowned as he watched Stark detach a couple machines from Leslie's body and help her get out of bed.

"And if he treats her like royalty?"

Banner sighed. "That's when you have to learn to let go."

It was a sobering answer that struck him hard. Loki felt as if his heart had dropped straight to the floor, a wave of sorrow overcoming him instantly. He was almost sure tears were coming to his eyes again. He cursed at himself mentally for being so emotional lately.

"Then I shall do what is best for her," he admitted softly. "I shall… let go."

Banner turned to try and comfort Loki but he was nowhere to be found. In the midst of everything the Doctor had forgotten that the god was a master sorcerer. Loki had probably teleported himself away from the painful scene.

Putting his hands in his pockets, Bruce began the sad trek back to his lab alone.

…

…

…

**Is it stupid that I made myself cry a little? Wow, girl… just wow. I gotta stop getting so attached to things!**

**Please give that little review button some love? It'd seriously make my day! :) And maybe I'd stop crying too!**

**To be continued… for the last time!**


	22. Friends Never Say Goodbye

_**My Final Quick Note**_

**Thank you to everyone who supported me throughout this story! I'm thrilled so many people came to enjoy it, and even better yet I'm so glad Leslie was well received. :) That was a big fear of mine in the beginning.**

**A special shout out to my friend Dani who encouraged me to write this in the first place! It's amazing what a sugar fueled conversation at IHOP after seeing The Avengers _again _will do to you. You're the best, girl!**

**With that, I hope you guys enjoy the final installment of Mischief, Midgard & Madness.**

… **which I've now come to realize is not that great of a title for this. Hah.**

…

…

…

Tony Stark was beyond thrilled to know he had brought Leslie back to herself. For the first time in a while he got to stare into her blissful green eyes, enjoy the sound of her musical laugh, and know once and for all that she would be safe.

"Bruce and I are leading a research project for you, you know." Stark gave a half-upset look Leslie's way. "It wasn't like you were gonna solve your own problem. Last I checked you paid your way through chemistry class."

Leslie frowned and studied her hands. "I know. Guess I was pretty dumb for keeping that under wraps, huh?" She was quite ashamed of herself for worrying everyone.

"Yeah, you were." Tony ruffled her hair and lifted his expression a little. "But that's what you've got me for. I'm the brains and the good looks… you're the comic relief."

Leslie's expression went flat. "Gee, thanks."

She rolled her eyes as Stark went to disconnect the last of the machines and helped her out of bed. The two couldn't help but laugh out loud. They held onto each other firmly and exchanged goofy smiles. There was some peace to be found in each other's company.

"Even though I'm digging the paper thin hospital gown we should probably get you some clothes. Not everyone wants to see your ass as much as me." Stark gave a shit-eating grin while Leslie slapped him upside the head.

"Have some tact, will you?" she ordered with a laugh.

The two had just emerged from the room no sooner had Loki and Banner left the area. They walked hand in hand down to a supply room and dug around some boxes until they came upon some uniforms. Stark found a small women's one-piece SHIELD jumpsuit and tossed it Leslie's way. She quickly tore off her gown and slipped the suit on over her undergarments. The navy blue ensemble hugged her frame and fit like a glove.

"How do I look?" she asked with a soft smile. She would probably be jumping up and down like an idiot if she had the energy. She was still rather weak and tired from being under.

"You look like you're going to have a happy future," replied Stark with an honest smile. Leslie leaned in and hugged him close. "It's great to have you back, Starship."

…

…

…

Loki had made himself disappear from the hallway but in truth he had not gone far. In the midst of the cold and rainy night, the Asgardian god had chosen to sit outside on the edge of some roofing. They had been docked at sea for a while now and the churning waves were a hypnotizing sight. He followed the rhythm of the water with his eyes, grateful that the rain was blending with his tears.

_No one said letting go had to be easy, right? _He drew his hands up to his face and curled up in a ball. It was no gentle drizzle outside. The rain was coming down in fast, chubby droplets that hurt a little when the wind picked up. Still, he could care less about that. He was dripping from head to toe and felt like he deserved every second of it.

_I wasted the time I had with you_, he thought in deep regret. _I was so busy chasing Ejlonwe that I never stopped to love you instead. And for that I have lost you. _He rested his head on his knees and looked off to one side, his eyes red with irritation. _Shall I always be deprived of affection? Perhaps this is my punishment still carrying on. Odin, you crafty bastard._

Leslie was walking with Tony back towards his room, taking him up on his offer to stay the night. She had been very adamant that it would strictly be a sleepover since she was not entirely together and, truth be told, she just wasn't in the mood tonight. Life had been busy enough these days and she was worn out.

As the couple passed by some large window panes a flash of lighting illuminated the outside world. Leslie glanced outside and caught a glimpse of something that looked a little off. _Was that a person sitting out there?_

"What the…?" She pushed herself up against the glass and squinted into the dark night. In a pale blend of moonlight and artificial lamps outside, she saw Loki curled up and miserable in the rain. "Oh my god! What's that idiot doing?"

She broke into a sprint for the nearest exit hatch, leaving a confused Stark in the middle of the hall by himself. It took him a moment to realize he should probably chase after her. But by the time he rounded the corner, she was completely out of sight.

Leslie had opened a random door and ran inside a room. She found a small window at the top that could be pushed open from inside. Thinking fast on her feet, she arranged a series of boxes to climb up and squeaked her way out of the little opening. The drop down to the roofing was a few feet steeper than she expected and the impact hurt her badly.

The sound of her body thudding made Loki snap up alertly and look around.

The brunette slowly pulled herself into a kneeling position and stared at Loki, looking miserable herself as the rain soaked her from head to toe.

"Leslie?" He turned and knelt facing her in return. "Are you stupid? Get inside! You just started recovering!" He was absolutely furious and screaming at her. "You'll get sick out here! Go away!"

"But—" Leslie was cut off by his yelling.

"I said _go away_," he snapped before getting to his feet and walking further away down the roofing. Leslie scrambled to her feet and jogged after him. Running was a little beyond her capabilities right now.

"Loki, I'm not going anywhere! So deal with it!"

Now she was screaming back at him. Neither of them sounded like they wanted each other's company but nothing could be further from the truth. She was about to scream something else when she suddenly lost her footing. The rain had made the carrier very slippery and Leslie couldn't stop herself from flipping about like a rag doll, falling and sliding clear off the edge. She gripped on to the edge of the structure for dear life, her body dangling over the churning ocean waters.

"Loki!" she screamed in desperation. Her grip was slippery, her weak body even less reassuring. Her heart began racing in panic. "Loki, please! Help me!"

Loki spun around to realize that she was nowhere in sight. Instantly he began to panic as well. His eyes scanned around in the dark until he spotted her two little hands gripping on to the side of the carrier. Her entire body was out of sight. His heart nearly leapt out of his chest.

"Leslie, hang on!" He instantly began running for her as fast as he could. "I'm coming!"

"Hurry!" she screamed as one hand slipped off the edge. "I can't hold on!"

Loki was just a few lunges away from her when her other hand lost its hold and she plunged into the icy waters below. Loki threw off his jacket and some of his other bulky layers before diving in after her. He swam around frantically, his eyes struggling to pan his surroundings in the darkness.

Leslie was struggling against a rip current underwater, fighting her damned hardest to breach the surface for air. Loki took a deep breath and plunged into the frigid waters, swimming deeper and deeper until at last he found her flailing figure. He reached out and tried to grab her but the rip current sucked her further below. Her flailing grew slower, weaker, the oxygen stores in her body depleting rapidly.

_Like hell if I'm losing you again! _Loki pushed with all his strength and latched his arms around her. He fought desperately against the rip current too now, pulling out of it with more success than the poor mortal had. Once they broke the surface together they realized the carrier was distancing itself away from them.

The exhausted woman panted for breath as she held on to Loki for dear life. Their bodies bobbed together in the waves like buoys.

"Are you crazy?" snapped Loki in a fit of rage. He was glaring her down intensely though she could not see it. She rested on his shoulder, eyes shut, still breathing heavily.

"You haven't figured that out by now? I'm certifiable." She fluttered her eyes open and stared at the sopping wet god. His long hair was formed to his frame just as hers was. They both looked depressingly ridiculous. At this, she had to smile.

Before an oncoming wave could knock the two below the surface again, Loki mustered what energy he had left to teleport them back onto the carrier. They dropped down on the ground together, Leslie on her stomach and Loki on his back, both of them completely beat. The relentless rain could care less about them and continued to pour down.

"What… were you doing… out here?" asked Leslie in between gasps.

"None… of your… business," replied the just as breathless Loki.

The brunette dragged herself over to the Asgardian who slowly sat up to meet her. The two stared at each other for what seemed like forever, both at a loss for words for one another's stupidity. Loki decided that he would be the one to break the tension.

"Titanic…" he said at last. Leslie tiled her head in confusion. "This is just like that stupid movie we watched called Titanic."

"What are you talking about?" Leslie flipped a few sopping wet hairs out of her face.

Loki smiled sadly and shook his head. "That pathetic mortal Jack and the wicked wench Rose, remember? We're just like them. You and I had something nice… but the last time I'll see you is the night we fall into the water together. You'll move on and end up happy with someone else… no matter how you feel about me."

Leslie squinted. "Wait, _what?_ Where are you going with this?"

The Asgardian took Leslie's face in his hands and kissed her softly, savoring every brief second of the moment. It was hard to discern from all the rain but she could have sworn he was crying ever so slightly. And truth be told, so was she.

Arms wrapped around one another, Leslie refused to let the moment end so soon. She pressed her lips to his, begging for this madness to last just a little while longer. The God of Mischief was in no position to protest, inviting her to climb on top of him and pin him to the ground. The two spent a silent ten minutes entwined in one another, kissing and caressing, crying and loving. But they both knew in the back of their minds that they were dragging on a lie, just delaying the inevitable.

"Leslie," moaned Loki in ecstasy as she began to assault his neck. "Please, stop."

The brunette pulled back instantly and stared at him confused. "But… I thought… you…?"

"I do." Loki hung his head and sighed. "Believe me, I want nothing more than to have you right here, right now, and forever for that matter. Nothing could bring me greater happiness." His sad, soaked gaze met hers in sorrow. "I told you, Rose. You've got to move on."

Leslie shook her head in protest. "I don't want to, Jack."

"But you love Stark," he admitted without a hint of jealousy, just as if it were a fact.

"It's two different kinds of love," she retorted. "I just can't put it into words."

"Then allow me to," he responded as he scooped the girl up into his arms.

He walked back inside the building through the way he came and found an empty bunk room. Setting Leslie down on the bed, he tossed her a towel from the linen closet before getting one for himself. The two dried their bodies as the conversation carried on.

"You're in love with Tony Stark because he's a long-time friend. You know him intimately, and with that comes reassurance and security. You can have a _future_ with him. There's enough stability there for you to settle down together one day, have children, live your lives out _oh_ so merrily as you Midgardians do."

Loki rubbed the towel behind his ear and went on. "With me, it is _much_ more difficult. I am of Asgard, a world much too far from here. I am a criminal and an outcast, a sinner forced to repent for years to come, I'm sure. I have no idea where my life is going from here. My purpose is unclear, my future is empty. I am not stable, nor can I offer stability. I shall not be in a place to settle down and have any sort of life with you outside of superficial frills."

Leslie knew in her heart that he spoke the truth. It was like he could peer into her soul and interpret all the muddled confusion that comprised her thought process.

"Leslie, I _love_ you. I love you more than I've ever loved anything in my life." He sat down beside her on the bed and began to dry her hair. "Thanks to a wise friend's words, because I love you I know it's best to let you go. Be with Stark, he'll make you happy."

The brunette latched onto Loki in a loving embrace, this one much more akin to friendship than romantic lust. "Thank you for understanding," she whispered delicately.

"Thank _you _as well," he whispered back as he petted her head. "Let's get you to his room, alright?" The god picked up Leslie like a doll again and carried her through the halls. "You can fall asleep if you'd like. You _must _be exhausted."

Leslie yawned and snuggled into his chest. "Please, I'm not tired at all."

The raven-haired god had to chuckle at that lie. It was cute when she tried to do what he did best. Soon the sound of her light snoring filled his ears and he knew she was restfully asleep. He reached Stark's door a couple minutes later and hesitated for a moment before it. His sad eyes took in the sight of Leslie sleeping in his arms, the faintest smile on her face while she probably dreamt of happy things.

_This is goodbye, my dear_, he thought as he kicked at Stark's door. It was crude but the best knocking he could manage since he arms were otherwise occupied.

An exhausted Tony opened the door to see a depressed looking Loki and a snoring Leslie, both wet and withered.

"Uhhh… okay then?" He opened the door further and allowed him to carry her inside. "What on earth happened to you two?"

"I was being an idiot outside in the rain," he confessed with guilt as he set Leslie down on a couch. "She came running out after me to see if I was alright and she fell into the ocean like a spaz. I dove in after her."

Stark slapped a palm to his forehead and walked over to Loki. "She's hopeless!" He extended a hand out to the Asgardian for a shake. "Thanks for saving her life, _again_."

Loki smiled weakly and accepted the handshake. "Yes, well perhaps two saves helps make up for two endangerments. It's an equalizing system."

Stark choked out some laughter and smiled. "Yeah, well you're all even now. I'm gonna get her some dry clothes and put her to bed. Do you need anything? Clothes, coffee, a _shot_?"

The Asgardian waved his hands with a chuckle. "No, I'm quite alright, but thank you. I'm just going to be on my way."

"Alright then. Thanks again, Rudolph. You're not half bad, you know?" The CEO gave an approving look his way. "You might wanna think about joining up with us one day." The suggestion was surprisingly _not_ sarcastic.

"With what, The _Avengers?_" Loki scoffed. "Don't press your luck, Stark."

The Asgardian was just about to exit the room when Leslie's soft voice stopped him cold.

"Loki… don't leave." Her eyes were still closed as she lay on the couch, hardly awake at all. "You're not leaving the planet without a proper goodbye."

Loki smiled softly. "Fine then. I shall wait until morning. Get some rest until then, Rose."

"Rose?" Stark quirked a brow at the nickname but Loki was gone before any reasoning was given. "Is there a story behind that, or…?" But Leslie was not going to answer him tonight. She was back to being passed out. Stark shook his head and went to go fetch the pore thing some dry clothes for bed.

…

…

…

Leslie's morning had been overwhelmingly busy. People came in shifts to visit her wherever she was. It seemed everyone was eager to get their little hello's and how are you's in. It reminded Loki a lot of the first day she took him to her company's labs. All the employees flocked to her the same way. At the time he had found it rather annoying but now he understood their attachment. Leslie had a way of brightening people's days.

"Sorry for crashing the party," said Nick Fury as he entered the bridge. "But I figured you'd want to get this now before you leave today." The Director threw a small metallic object the brunette's way.

She stumbled backwards a little to catch it. Upon examining the item her eyes lit up with utter joy. "This is _my_ badge?" As Nick Fury confirmed her thoughts she ran a finger along the contours of the sparkling silver adornment. She was finally a fulltime SHIELD agent.

Steve Rogers and Thor took turns slapping her on the back in congratulations. She had to stop them after a few rounds because it quickly turned into a competition to out-do one another's strength. Leslie valued her spine too much to see who would've won that contest.

"I'll be on call twenty-four seven," she chimed with joy as she pinned the badge onto her cardigan. She gave Fury an honorable salute. "Agent Leonards, at your service sir."

"You'll be a handful but worth it nonetheless, Leonards." Fury smiled, shook his head and left the bridge so she could continue celebrating with her friends.

"Don't tell me this means you're gonna have to jump out of windows in the middle of dates." Stark frowned. "I'll have to turn your cell phone off."

"You will do _no _such thing," replied Leslie with a smirk.

The two were beside one another looking happier than ever. Something about sleeping alongside him last night had reminded her that Tony Stark would always have her heart. For as much as she loved Loki, she would always love Tony more. There was too much time between them for anything to rip them apart.

"I think I shall be off soon," announced Thor once Loki came to join everyone on the bridge. "My brother and I are due back in Asgard. We have much to attend to."

"Thanks for reminding me," muttered the younger Asgardian. He came over to Leslie and greeted her with a soft smile. There was less sorrow behind it than yesterday. It seemed that he too had come to terms with life overnight. "I shall miss you terribly, you know."

"Oh, I know." Leslie grinned and gave him a hug. "Come and visit often, alright?" She released him and flashed a wink his way. "There's _so_ much more culture I want to get you into here. You don't know the half of it."

"Why do I fear your intentions?" Loki frowned nervously.

"You're such a _baby_," joked the brunette. "I'm talking about the simple things. Bowling, mini-golf, ice cream parlors, carnivals, roller coasters, skate boarding, finger painting…"

"I see why you said to visit _often_," replied the Asgardian with a coy smile. "Sounds to me like you have a list to last a lifetime."

"Well I'd sure hope so." Leslie reached out and took his hand, giving it a little squeeze. "I wouldn't mind being friends forever."

Loki rolled his eyes and waved her off. "Just remember, you've brought this curse upon yourself. When I show up demanding your silly finger paints and carnivals you shall have no one to blame but yourself."

"I think I'll manage," replied the woman with a giggle. Thor came around quickly to give her a bone crushing hug. "Oh boy!" She wriggled out of his grasp after a minute. "Easy big fella, I'm a mortal again, remember?"

Thor gave a husky laugh and nudged her in the shoulder. "The mortal look suits you well. I hope to see you in Asgard again someday."

"Oh yeah, Loki's gotta take Leslie hunting," reminded Rogers. The Asgardian sorcerer rolled his eyes and laughed.

"Yes, that ought to be quite the experience. But we'll save all this for another day." Reaching over to Leslie's hand, he pulled her daintiness up and kissed it royally. "Until next time, Rose."

Leslie threw herself onto him in a tight squeezing hug. "I'll always be here for you, Jack," she whispered in return before letting him go.

Thor produced the tesseract for the trip back home. He did not look forward to explaining why he stole it to Odin but that was on the top of his to-do list when he and Loki returned. They each grabbed one end of the container that housed it and gave a wave to everyone before the glowing blue light whisked them away.

…

…

…

**Six Months Later…**

Tony Stark and Leslie Leonards laughed merrily over a bottle of champagne at their VIP booth in The Crystal Room. All the business talk these days was rather one-sided since Stark ran the show. Leslie loved hearing about how the merger was playing out. The company was releasing prototypes for the first line of self-sufficient cars at the latest Stark Expo exhibition. The brunette could hardly believe that her CEO boyfriend had brought that flashy bullshit back to the city.

Stark went on to talk about how he and Banner might be on to something in terms of a cure. Leslie was itching for good news to come of that since becoming Axia on missions was incredibly helpful. To be able to do that without keeping track of time would make her professional life significantly easier.

On her end, Leslie shared stories of missions that kept her away from home. She had to handle some underground pirating in Bangladesh with Clint Barton last week and was chock full of golden quotes. Her conversations with Hawkeye often produced comical moments. Stark especially enjoyed the moments when Leslie would bug Barton about asking Natasha out. She was convinced to have them dating before Christmas.

Loki had not yet come to visit since his probation on Asgard now prohibited such travels. Thor had mentioned how he had to deal with reprimanding for the whole Velora incident. It was almost eerie timing that Loki would finally be free to come visit again on Christmas Eve. With Thanksgiving a week away, the brunette found herself counting the days.

As the happy couple wrapped up their dinner they went to exit their booth and enjoy a romantic evening at Stark's penthouse. Before she left the room, however, Leslie glanced over her shoulder at the place where – almost a year ago now – Loki had sat before her crying, heartbroken soul. He offered to do a little petty community service and be on his merry way.

"You sure did a lot more than that, psycho," she joked to herself aloud as she turned to join up with Stark in their limo. Resting her head on the CEOs chest, she knew this was where she was always meant to be. And neither of them had any intention of letting go.

…

…

…

**OH MY GOD, IT'S OVER.**

**_Or_ IS IT?**

**Just in case you're wondering what I mean by that, I'm planning on doing a Christmas Eve one-shot where Loki comes to Midgard again. It won't make sense to anyone who hasn't read this story so I'm relying on you guys to follow me over to that story and let me know what you think~**

**But in terms of the main story, we are done. :) Thanks for enjoying this guys! I hope you come to like all the other (shorter) works I'm planning to put up as time goes on!  
**

**If you've made it this far, would you mind giving that review button some love?**

It's blue and alone! _JUST LIKE LOKI._

… **not like I'm trying to guilt trip you or anything.**


End file.
